End Games
by Aleatrice
Summary: L is taking new risks to solve the Kira Investigation. Light Yagami is Kira and Misa has no memories of being the Second Kira. While Light becomes increasingly obsessed with killing L, Misa begins to doubt his feelings toward her. Meanwhile, L gets closer to Misa in order to obtain information on Kira. LXMisa, mature rating so NO KIDDIES!
1. Last Resorts

**Greeting:** _Hello readers, welcome to my first fanfic. I plan to make this a semi-long story (about 20-25 chapters). This is chapter 1. I will say right now that I am COMMITTED TO FINISHING THIS STORY. I mean it because I know what it's like to really like a story only to never know the ending because it was discontinued .. I will try to stay as true to the characters of Death Note anime as I can. Comments, questions, compliments, and suggestions are truly welcomed and they keep me motivated to keep writing so please review or send me a PM if you feel like it. Thanks!_

_**Another thing:** At this point in the story, Misa does not have her death note. She had surrendered it to Light so he has both death notes. This also means that Misa has no idea that she is the Second Kira. _

* * *

Misa Amane laid on her bed, writing in a journal she's kept since she became an orphan three years ago. She was 16 at the time of the tragic event. Since then she found that writing was a good way for her to organize her thoughts and feelings. She needed that now more than ever because she was a prime suspect in the Kira investigation. She wasn't sure how she got involved in the Kira case to begin with. It all started after she began to date her dream man, Light Yagami.

She knew she had met him in Aoyama one day, and from then on it was love at first sight. A few days later, she visited him at his school, and met his weird "friend" who went by the false name of Hideki Ryuga. That day marked the beginning of what became the second worst experience of her life, right after losing her parents. She was held in strict captivity for 50 days by that very same "Hideki Ryuga" and now she was being held captive again inside the Kira Taskforce Headquarters until her innocence was proved.

With a dramatic stroke of her pen, Misa finished her journal entry. She jumped off her bed and marched towards her living room with a determined look on her face. While she had to admit that having her own penthouse floor in the 23-story fortress was pretty rad, she was still angry for having to stay there, under constant surveillance. Some days she coped better than others, and for some reason, today she really could not stand the place.

_'This makes no sense!'_ She thought, angry, looking for her jacket. '_That jerk claims that he's justice, and then deprives me of freedom for no good reason. What kind of justice is this?!'_ She thought as she threw on her black leather jacket and knee-high boots. '_I bet that pervert just keeps me here so that he can watch me all the time. Ugh...' _She huffed at the thought. Misa walked out of her apartment for the first time in months, and into a plain elevator lobby. Surely her captors were aware of her movements but she didn't care. She wanted out of there.

_'__I'd love to see you try to stop me Ryuzaki-Ryuga-L whomever you really are. I'll give you hell if you do'_ She boarded the elevator and pressed the down button.

_-In the main Investigation Room-_

Down on the first floor, most of the Kira Investigation Taskforce (K.I.T.) members were getting ready to leave for the day. It was 7pm, and they were all exhausted and eager to get home. That is, all except for raven haired man perched on his chair, barefoot and eating a pastry as he studied a surveillance video.

"Ryuzaki, do you need us to do anything before we go?" Chief Yagami asked as he approached L. The dark haired man turned to chief Yagami, but before he could answer, a large "W" materialized on all the monitors in the room. Watari's voice came through the speakers "Ryuzaki, Miss Amane has left her quarters and appears to be descending through the elevator shaft. It seems she may be attempting to exit the premises." Everyone else gasped at the news.

The detective looked unperturbed.

"Thank you for the information, Watari. Please do as I instructed in case Miss Amane were to attempt to leave headquarters." Said L, calmly.

Watari's voice responded without hesitation "As you wish, Ryuzaki." And with that, the "W" on the monitors disappeared. There was a moment of silence in the room as everyone awaited to hear what these "instructions" were. Finally Matsuda caved and stepped toward L.

"Hey, what are these instructions for when Misa Misa attempts to leave headquarters? You're not planning to restrain Misa Misa again like you did when we were interrogating her, are you?" he asked. Matsuda, always the optimistic fanboy was quick to defend Misa whenever possible. He, most of all disliked L's methods of interrogation, which he witnessed during Misa's 50-day incarceration. Chief Yagami stepped in.

"Matsuda! Let's not jump to conclusions. This is maximum security facility, no one gets in or out without proper clearance so Miss Amane will not go anywhere." Interjected Chief Yagami. Right as Chief Yagami spoke, a surveillance camera of the main entrance caught everyone's attention. It showed Misa triumphantly marching out of the building having met no resistance whatsoever. Everyone's jaws dropped.

"Chief! Look, she's getting away!" Said Matsuda pointing out the painfully obvious. "Yes, we all see that!" Retorted the Chief. Everyone was now looking at the seemingly disinterested detective for an explanation of why the potential Second Kira was allowed to walk out the front door.

As usual, no explanation was offered. Aizawa was angry and demanded he answer.

"What is the meaning of this Ryuzaki? What do you think you're doing? That woman is a potential danger, why was she not stopped by the security system?" he asked.

For the first time, the detective took his eyes off of the surveillance video he had been examining and looked at the screen showing the main entrance, which Misa had just pranced out of.

"That would be because I temporarily disabled the security at the front entrance, Aizawa." Answered L, matter-of-factly.

"So you're letting her go, just like that after all the chief had to go through to get those tapes she sent and that evidence that points to her as the Second Kira?!" continued Aizawa, now fighting to control his temper. Aizawa had always found it difficult to work with L and this was a good example of why. Most knew the raven-haired detective never let the rest of the team in on his plans until it was too late. Aizawa detested that about L. He approached the detective in a menacing way, his face contorted in angry lines.

"Mr. Aizawa, I believe that letting Miss Amane walk out of here will be quite beneficial to us. Since she is the Second Kira, then I am very interested in witnessing what she will do once she believes that she is no longer under surveillance. I believe we might be witnesses to how she kills." Said L calmly. He had purposefully left out the part about seeing if Misa contacts Light and gives away any compromising information that might help prove that Light is Kira. But, of course, this was for him to know and for the rest of the group to find out eventually.

"And you couldn't tell us that?! You're putting people's lives at risk, she knows our faces, what if she kills one of us?" yelled Aizawa, now pounding his fist on L's desk, effectively knocking off the tray of pastries.

L looked at Aizawa for a moment, and then nonchalantly dropped the pastry he had been toying with into his mouth. There was a tense silence as L chewed the pastry. Another thing that Aizawa detested about L was his overly calm, detached demeanor during alarming situations like these. There were times in which Aizawa wished that L were more explosive, more emotionally invested, more _normal._ Perhaps then he may even like the guy. There were so many things about L's personality that didn't sit well with him.

"It's not that simple. There's something that doesn't make sense to me that I believe is a key component to solving this case." Explained L, finishing his pastry. "Assuming that Misa Amane is the Second Kira, who can kill with just a face, then she would have killed us all by now." Said the detective as he rested his hands on his knees. "I believe there's something missing here, and that "something" is the key to their killing method. We just have to figure out what that is, and when we do, then be sure, we will catch both Kiras."

The taskforce members didn't seem convinced. The truth was, L himself wasn't entirely convinced that his plan would work either. However, if there was even the slimmest chance that Misa Amane would mess up and compromise herself and Kira, then L had to try. They were running out of time and options. With Light having "proved" his innocence during his incarceration, it was only a matter of time before he tried to eliminate him. It was all a wager at this point. If Light was Kira and Misa Amane was the Second Kira, then he was already in trouble. He would undoubtedly be their first target. Sure it would seem suspicious that he would die shortly after Misa Amane was 'released' but regardless, Misa and Light could make it out to be mere coincidence due to lack of evidence. After all, they had been smart enough to evade justice for this long.

There was a long silence, which was broken when Watari came into the room with another tray full of pastries for L. L kindly thanked him and grabbed one of the sweets in between his thumb and forefinger. "If it makes you feel better, Misa Amane's clothing is bugged with trackers woven in with the fibers." He took a bite out of his pastry."Also, she's being closely followed, and we have cameras set up all over this area plus another 15 mile perimeter or so beyond that. The moment she does something, we will most likely know." Said the raven-haired detective nonchalantly.

The taskforce seemed a little bit more at ease. They were always impressed by the amount of surveillance power that L possessed throughout the area. There must be at least 1500 cameras to cover an area so large. Even Aizawa had to admit that L was truly impressive and thorough.

"I see. So with all of these precautions, the situation is not so alarming after all" Said Chief Yagami sounding relieved

"Precisely" Said L. Although he would never say it, he too was relieved that chief Yagami was seeing things his way.

"I am sorry we doubted you, Ryuzaki" Said the chief. The detective nodded and simply went back to what he was doing before.

_-Meanwhile, elsewhere-_

Misa couldn't believe how easy it was to leave Headquarters. She wasn't stupid. She knew something was up. Surely she must be getting followed by someone or watched in some way. _'Oh well, that doesn't matter. It's not like I'm going to go off and kill anyone because I am not Kira!' _she thought_. 'Now I just want to find Light. I miss him so much! He hasn't visited me in over 2 days, I MUST see him!'_

She looked around to see if she was being followed but saw no one. Convinced that maybe she had been wrong to assume someone was tailing her, she boarded the closest bus headed towards Light's neighborhood. Luckily she had enough money to get around. While on the bus, Misa sat by herself and stared out the window, hoping that no one on the bus would recognize her.

_ 'This is so weird...This isn't what I expected at all.'_ Thought Misa. _'Hmm...Maybe the reason why Ryuzaki didn't stop me from leaving was because he knows I'm innocent and he can't keep me around any longer without causing a scandal. That must be it! Ha! I win, Ryuzaki. I knew he was just bluffing this whole time and trying to pin me as the Second Kira just because he was mad that he couldn't find the real Kira! What a jerk.' _She looked out the window. Even though she knew she wasn't Kira, she still found it odd that someone as smart as L would be so adamant about her being a suspect. Then there was also the hair fibers they found on the tapes sent by the second Kira. _'I have no idea how that happened. The brainy weirdo must have it all wrong. He probably planted that evidence himself to avoid looking stupid' _She thought stubbornly.

During the bus ride, Misa caught herself thinking about the panda-eyed detective more than she liked to admit. It was hard for her not to after all these months of enduring him. He was her captor, a pain in the ass, annoying, weird, even more annoying, a know-it-all, and also a man who paid more attention to her than her own boyfriend. That confused her. L claimed that her beloved Light was Kira, but he didn't watch him as closely as he watched her. Light was allowed to be free from headquarters whereas she wasn't.

'_Whatever' _She concentrated on forcing all thoughts of L from her mind, instead focusing on her dreamy Light. He was always too busy to really do anything with her, but he was her boyfriend, and that meant something, right? Misa never understood how she could not quite remember the circumstances under which she met Light, or how their relationship began. It was weird because she was the type of woman who celebrated every mile stone, plus some, and so she had an elephant's memory when it came to her relationships. Yet, she chose to not question it. All she was certain of was that she wanted to be with him right this instant, and no one, not even Ryuzaki was going to stop her.


	2. Encounters

_**Writer's note**: Thanks to everyone who read and followed and favorited my story! Here's the second chappy. Enjoy and review =] As always, questions, comments, and concerns are always welcome!_

* * *

It was getting late. Light Yagami got off at the train station by his apartment complex. He had moved out of his parents' house as soon as his incarceration ended. He had to admit, it had been a close call. However, having Mikami perform the killing of criminals while he was imprisoned had turned out to be the perfect plan. He also had to congratulate himself for thinking so far ahead by making Misa give him ownership her notebook as soon as she was taken into custody. He had not expected Misa to be arrested under suspicion of being the Second Kira but regardless, his overly-cautious nature proved to be a life saver. He gave Misa's notebook to Mikami along with instructions to start the killings two weeks after receiving it. Because the killings started up again while Light was imprisoned, he was exonerated of (most) suspicions.

Not only that, but choosing Mikami as his accomplice was an even better decision. He did exactly as Light told him, and what's more, he even made the deal for the Shinigami Eyes! Now all he had to do was find a way for Mikami to see L, and then it would be all over. Yes, everything was going well. Light was so pleased with the recent development of events that he had to restrain himself from smirking publicly. While it was dark and no one was around, he had no doubt that L would still be monitoring his every step closely. He had proven his innocence to the rest of the KIT members but L was not as easily convinced. Light was sure that in L's mind, he was still a suspect. Because of this, he could not yet resume the killings himself. '_No, not until I eliminate L'_ he thought. Then he heard it, fast-approaching footsteps coming toward him from behind. Light turned around and nearly toppled over when someone very familiar tackled him.

Misa had turned the corner onto Light's apartment complex. And there he was, about to enter. She ran as fast as she could to catch up to him. "LIGHT!" she yelled as she threw herself into his arms. In the blink of an eye, the petite blonde had Light in a vice grip. "Oh Light I'm so happy to see you! I thought I would die in there without you! Where have you been these past two days? You'd better not have gone out with other women because you're mine and no one else's!" she said without pause.

Light was shocked to see her. "Misa! What are you doing here? Does L know you left Headquarters?" he asked. '_Dammit, this woman, she's always so impulsive. The last thing I need is for L to come after me looking for her'_.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe that pervert was too busy watching videos of me showering at night or something to notice that I left. Seriously, I walked right out the front door!" Explained Misa delightfully.

'_Out the front door, huh? That can only mean that L is definitely up to something. Otherwise he would not have let Misa walk out without meeting any resistance' _Thought Light. "Misa, listen. Thanks for coming to see me," Said Light. Misa's face lit up with anticipation. "But I have to take you back to Headquarters."

"WHAT?! But I just got here!" yelled Misa in her overdramatic tone. "Can't I just stay with you at your place even if just for tonight?" She continued. She put on her best version of a puppy face to try and sway his decision.

Light explained patiently, "I know you miss me, but I just recently proved to L that I'm not Kira, and I think he's starting to trust me. Soon he'll let me go back to Headquarters full time to work on the case with the rest of the K.I.T. I don't think it will look very trustworthy of me if I hide you in my apartment." He said trying his best to be patient with her.

Misa was upset now. "But Light, I'm not the Second Kira and I shouldn't have to hide from anyone. Please—" but before Misa could continue to pleading in her high-pitched whine, Light interrupted.

"No. I'm sorry Misa. I'm taking you back to Headquarters now." He said decisively. Light grabbed Misa firmly by the arm and walked with her back in the direction of the train station. Misa reluctantly followed. Even if she tried to stand her ground, Light was stronger than she was and could maneuver her small frame with ease, which he did as he dragged her behind him. The entire train ride there, Misa tried to be as affectionate and seductive as she could in hopes of making him change his mind. However, Light was impervious to her charms, it seemed. '_Why is it that the man I love is__ such an honest goodie-two-shoes who has to follow the rules all the time?!" _She thought hopelessly. _'That pervert Ryuzaki, on the other hand, probably would have bribed me with chocolates to go inside with him. For once, Light, I wish you were a little more like the pervert'_ She thought, giving herself the chills at the idea of Light being more like L.

_-in a dark corner down the block, a couple that appeared to be making out minutes broke their embrace—_

A beautiful, tall blonde woman and an equally attractive blonde man stood in the shadows. The woman took out her cell phone and dialed a number.

"Ryuzaki, this is Weddy and Aiber reporting. We've confirmed that Misa Amane is with Light Yagami, but no suspicious actions took place between them.

L responded in a dull tone, barely betraying a hint of disappointment. "Did they seem to pass any sort of note or item between each other?" Weddy denied this and L responded "Thanks to both of you. Is that all?"

Weddy quickly said: "No, that's not all! Exactly how many times do we have to go on these boring assignments?! I demand an upgrade-" but before the woman could continue her ranting, the dial tone interrupted her. L had already hung up the phone.

_-Back at Headquarters-_

L was sitting at his desk stacking empty mini JELL-O containers on top of each other. _Well I guess this little experiment yielded...nothing. Frankly, I'm not surprised. _The door to the main room of Headquarters opened and in walked Light with Misa in stride. L turned slightly to greet the newcomers. The slight motion caused the mini JELL-O containers to wobble and crumble on his desk.

"Good to see you here again, Light" said L giving Light a small smile.

Light went straight to business. "Ryuzaki, I'm here to bring Misa back."

"Very well" L replied.

Light waited a moment and then said what had been on his mind ever since his incarceration ended.

"I also wanted to talk to you about coming back to work with the K.I.T." said Light carefully. L said nothing, making Light uneasy. It was extremely crucial that he be let back into L's inner circle. The only way to bring him down was from within. "Now that that we know that I'm not Kira, I'd like to be part of the investigation again. I know I can help, you once said so yourself" He continued.

"Yes, I expected you'd make such request" responded L.

"In that case—" Light continued only to be abruptly interrupted.

"HEY! Doesn't anyone even remember that I'm here?!" yelled Misa. She was holding Light by the arm tightly now. "Light, please tell me you won't leave right away. Stay with me tonight." She pleaded.

Light looked annoyed now. He tried to pry his arm out of Misa's vice grip unsuccessfully.

"Not now, Misa. I have important business to discuss with Ryuzaki" Said Light, scowling at her.

"Our relationship is important too! Why don't you ever want to talk to me? All you ever do here is talk to Ryuzaki! Well, why don't you just ASK HIM OUT ON A DATE. I think you two are just PERFECT for each other!" Said Misa dramatically.

Light was gaping at her. He couldn't believe her stupidity. '_Dammit Misa, you're making this so difficult. All I need is to get things settled with L so that I can come back to Headquarters and gain his trust. If only I could talk without interruption!' _Thought Light angrily.

"Misa, please—" he started to say in a warning tone, but again Light was interrupted by Misa's pleas.

"But Light! Don't you want to spend time with me?" She held onto him even tighter than before. Finally, Light snapped.

"Misa, STOP!" yelled Light. The blonde gasped as Light forcefully pulled her arms off of him and then pushed her back with more force than was necessary. The backwards momentum made her lose her balance and she fell onto the floor.

At that moment, time seemed to stop. The room was silent and no one was saying a word. Misa was on the floor, looking up at Light, inwardly praying that he would at least show some concern for her. When Light did nothing, she felt her heart break a little, and her clear blue eyes quickly started filling up with unshed tears.

Light stood before her, not saying a word. He was shocked at his own outburst. He simply looked at her before saying "Misa, I'm sorry, but you shouldn't hold onto me like that. You know I don't like it." He wasn't making the situation any better.

Misa couldn't stand to look at Light in the face so she looked at L. His large dull, dark eyes were looking straight at her, as though he were seeing her for the first time. She couldn't remember a time when he'd really looked at her with his full, undivided attention, almost as if he were concerned. She didn't like him seeing her in such a vulnerable state. As hurt and embarrassed as she felt, she most certainly did not want his pity. That would be the worst. Everything started going blurry for her as hot tears clouded her visions. She silently got up and began to run up the stairs. It was quite a few floors up but Misa didn't care. By the time she was at her penthouse door, she was full on sobbing.

Back in the main investigation room, L and Light stood silently for a little bit. L looked pensively at the floor, a hint of a frown on his face, whereas Light was still mulling over what to do next. Light broke the awkward silence "Well, that was…unexpected. I'm sorry for the uncomfortable situation." he gave L a small, polite bow. "Please let's go back to the issue of me working with the K.I.T. again."

L nodded slightly and said "I'll discuss it with the rest of the task force tomorrow. You may return to Headquarters after I speak with them."

Light smiled slightly and said "Thanks Ryuzaki. I'm sure that together, we'll catch Kira and bring him to justice!"

L nodded slightly but his face remained serious. "Yes, after you made the very honest move of bringing back Misa Amane, the Second Kira, how could I not trust you to work on the investigation?" L said suspiciously.

"Eh, right." Responded Light, not missing the suspicious undertone behind L's words.

"Now, Light, I have a lot of work to do." L said as he swiveled his chair around so he was facing his computer screen and the crumbled pile of JELL-O containers on his desk.

Light took this as his cue to leave. "Alright, thank you Ryuzaki. I'll see you soon." He said as he departed from the room. _'I can't believe how easy that was. L, your days are numbered' _thought the brunette as he walked out of Headquarters.

Once Light was gone, L began to rebuild his stack of JELL-O containers. All the while, in his mind he replayed the scene that had taken place before him a few minutes ago. He saw the hurt in Misa's eyes as she looked at him. He had never seen that look on her face. It was a look of pure humiliation and hurt. '_That was not right' _He thought to himself as he stacked his fourth JELL-O container.

_-A couple of hours later-_

Misa was sitting by her floor-to-ceiling living room window overlooking the city. Even the nice night-lit view of Japan could not cheer her up. Her eyes were puffy from when she was crying earlier and she felt exhausted. Still, she could not let herself sleep. She could not get the evening's events out of her mind, Light's insistence that she return to headquarters, his pushing her away, his standing before her not saying anything, L suddenly looking at her with those big eyes, pitying her. '_Was he trying to help me or something? Yeah, as if he'd do something like that...' _She thought cynically.

The door to her penthouse suddenly opened and in walked the very subject that had been on her mind a mere seconds before. "What are you doing here, pervert? " She asked looking up at L and wiping her eyes with her hands. For some reason she didn't want him to see her crying.

"Will you please stop calling me a pervert?" L said dryly. "I only wanted to see if you wanted a piece of cake." He gave her a small smile. Sure enough, he had brought a small plate with a piece of yellow cake with a lot of icing on top.

"No thanks, cake makes you fat. The last thing I need is to get fat" replied Misa miserably.

"Actually, I've found that you don't gain any weight if you burn calories by using your brain." He explained. Misa rolled her eyes half-jokingly.

"You would say that. Unfortunately I'm not a mad genius like you who can just burn a gazillion calories by sitting and thinking all day."

"It's true though. Your brain burns, on average, about 20% of your daily calorie intake. It's always active and so it uses up the most energy." He explained as he took a large bite out of the cake.

"Whatever." She looked at him eat her cake. "Hey, are you serious? I thought the cake was for me!" She said sounding more like her usual self.

"Yes, I am always serious about cake" Said L in between bites. Misa looked pointedly at the cake and her stomach gave an involuntary grumble. She was actually really hungry. L noticed her looking at the cake. He stopped half-way through the pastry and offered it to her. She tentatively took it, though she did not touch it at first.

"Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden? Don't think that I'm going to forgive you for keeping me locked in here just because you brought me cake. Besides, it's your fault that Light and I can't be together right now!" Misa said, taking a bite out of the cake.

L responded "We've been over this. While you may not 'remember' being the Second Kira, there is enough evidence against you to at least throw you in jail as a Kira conspirator. I'm actually doing you a favor by keeping you here" he told her. Misa was about to say something in outrage when L put a finger up to stop her. "Also, you may have forgotten that your apartment is wiretapped and your crying is getting to be quite distracting." He finished and put his finger down. "Now you can say whatever you want."

"How many times do I have to say it?! I'm NOT THE SECOND KIRA for the millionth time—" Misa stopped herself with a defeated sigh before she verbally abused him. "Nevermind, just forget it. It's not like it'll make a difference what I say." She said and took a large bite out of her cake.

There was a minute of silence. L stood there pensively watching her devour the cake and then said. "Misa, I believe not too long ago you said that we were friends, correct?" She looked at him and said "Mhm, what of it?" as she took another large bite of her cake.

L placed his forefinger on his bottom lip, as he formulated his next question: "Well, this is being a good friend, isn't it?" He asked. Misa was a bit taken aback by his simple question. She never took L for the type who cared about friends. In fact, as far as she was concerned, his only goal in life was to catch Kira. She suddenly found herself wondering what kind of person L was deep down, and what he would do if he weren't looking for Kira.

"Yeah, I guess the circumstances are a bit muddy but I suppose you could call bringing fattening sweets to someone who's depressed being a good friend." She said as she took one last bite out of her cake.

"And do you feel better now?" he asked now looking straight at her. Now she was really weirded out. He was looking at her again and she wasn't used to it. Not to mention that he's actually asking her how she _feels. _ This was definitely bizarre.

Suddenly, Misa burst out laughing. L looked at her, intrigued. Misa could not stop her laughter and L had to ask her "What's so funny?"

Misa finally stopped laughing and gave him a small smile. "Oh Ryuzaki, it's just that asking someone how they are doing is something that's so natural for people. But when you do it, it's like the most bizarre thing. You actually had me worried!" She said and then started chuckling again. Misa had a melodious laughter that L found surprisingly pleasing.

L gave her a small smile and scratched his messy black hair. "I suppose you're right" He said. They spent a few more seconds in silence just looking at each other and then L said, "I have a lot to do so I'm going back to work downstairs. And please stop crying, it is somewhat of a neusance" He said nonchalantly as he walked away from Misa.

"Easy for you to say!" She yelled back at him. "Ha, maybe I like annoying you. If I am the second Kira, then I could kill you at any time instead of just being a _nuisance_. I'm actually doing _you _a favor every moment I don't kill you." She taunted playfully, using his earlier argument against him.

"Is that a confession?" L said playfully as he turned toward her.

"Of course not!" Misa said quickly. _Geez I hope he can take a joke!' _She thought.

"Goodnight" said L as he exited the apartment.

"Goodnight" Said Misa to no one as she smiled to herself. '_That was kind of pleasant'_ she thought as she got up from her window and went to retrieve her journal. It was going to be a long night still, but she had to admit that she did feel a little better.


	3. Strawberries & Wine

_**Writer's note:**Hey everyone! Thanks for reading this far. Sorry for taking a little bit longer than usual to post the chapter. Please feel free to comment or review because I really would love to hear what you guys think :) _

_Without further ado, enjoy chapter 3!_

A week had gone by since the incident with Light. Not much had happened since. Light was again working with the K.I.T., and whenever he wasn't doing that, he was busy at school. Misa tried to give him some space the first couple of days because she didn't want to annoy him. She had decided to forgive him for the way he treated her the week before. Maybe she had been too clingy and suffocating. To her disappointment, Light didn't reward her for patiently keeping her distance by visiting her or acknowledging her presence. For days she waited in her penthouse for the door to open and Light to walk in, but that never happened. Most nights, she even dolled herself up in a sexy evening dress, hoping that he would show up. To her embarrassment the only one who saw her in one of her slamming outfits was L.

_-flahsback-_

That night she had worn a sleek, form-fitting red dress that went down to her mid-thigh. She was splayed out on her couch facing the entrance to her apartment, wine glasses and chocolate strawberries already set up on the living room table. The look on her face when the door opened and L walked in was absolutely priceless.

"Amane, I'm here to ask you some questions," he said, walking into the penthouse. When he took in the sight before him, his jaw fell slack and his eyes went slightly wide. The two stared at each other for what seemed a long moment.

Misa was mortified. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment and she wished a thousand times over that this were just some twisted dream she was having. _Seriously, Light's father himself could have walked in here and it wouldn't be as obnoxious as this,_ she thought.

"Why are YOU here?!" Misa demanded as she sat up cross-legged, with her arms crossed over her breasts.

L's expression went back to its usual openness. "I just told you why. Do you ever listen?" He said matter-of-factly.

"Whatever, I know what you said. I meant to ask why are you here and not Light? Is he coming right behind you?" she asked looking hopefully at the door.

"Light? No, he won't be joining us." L climbed onto the couch and perched himself next to Misa, who scooted away a bit. "But since you're curious, I actually asked him to come along but he refused. He said it wouldn't be necessary."

Misa tried to hide the disappointment she felt at this information. She wanted to see Light so badly. She looked at L and saw he was resting his forefinger against his bottom lip like he usually did when he was intrigued by something. She noticed he was staring very intently at _her_. She started to feel chills down her spine as a result of his scrutiny. _He's looking at me again, but this time like in a pervy way. And I'm actually starting to like this….not good…I've definitely been cooped up in here too long._ Misa snapped herself out of it. Neither said a word and she was starting to feel suffocated by the silence. Luckily at some point, L had switched his focal point from Misa to the bowl of chocolate covered strawberries. '_No surprise there' _She thought.

You know you can have some if you want" She said, taking the opportunity to distract him.

"Don't mind if I do" Said the raven-haired man as he reached for the fruit bowl. L picked up a strawberry, then another, and finally he took the whole bowl onto his lap.

Misa gave a defeated sigh and smiled a bit at L's obsession with sweet things. _Well my romantic evening is shot. If I'm going to be with the brainy weirdo, I might as well try to relax_,she thought as she reached for the wine bottle on the table. She offered the bottle to L but he refused. "I'm fine thanks" He said.

"Suit yourself!" Said Misa as she proceeded to chug straight out of the bottle. She really didn't give a rat's ass about whatever L had to ask her so she might as well drink her disappointments away.

"Misa, do you love Light?" asked L as he chomped down on a strawberry.

"Of course I do! He's the love of my life!" She answered without hesitation.

"But you also admitted to deeply admiring Kira, is that correct?"

Misa hesitated for a bit, not wanting to say something that might incriminate her. "Yeah, so what?"

"You also know that Light is trying to catch Kira, which would likely lead to an execution. Light feels that Kira is a cold-blooded murderer who holds little regard for human lives. As we have witnessed before, he has killed innocents as well as criminals. Light feels, and I agree with him on this, that Kira must be brought to real justice. How do you feel about that?"

_What is he getting at? _She thought. Misa took a moment to carefully craft her answer. "It's true that I'm thankful to Kira for avenging my parents' deaths" She took a long sip of her wine and continued to speak. "Not many people know this, but my parents were murdered by a man who was supposed to be in prison. He was out on bail and even worse, he had a long list of offenses but there was never enough evidence to convict him. He'd gotten away time after time. You see, what you call "justice" just isn't enough to protect the innocent. It's not enough to change the world, the way Kira can. But you probably don't understand that Mr. Righteous Punisher"

"Actually, I do understand. I was orphaned at a very young age." L said looking into his bowl of strawberries. Misa was taken aback by this bit of personal information he'd just shared with her. Before she could ask him anything about it, L continued his questioning.

"So then how do you justify your support for Light? You're contradicting yourself."

Misa took another long sip of wine. "As I was saying, Kira killed the man who murdered my parents. For that I feel relief and gratitude. However, I want to be happy. I don't feel happiness because my parents' murderer is dead. I feel happiness at the thought of being with my Light forever. I feel happy at the thought of loving and being loved. Call me stupid or contradictive or whatever, it's how I feel." She drank some more wine.

L looked at her very carefully, analyzing, studying. He was sitting a mere couple of inches from the attractive blonde. Misa no longer cared about their proximity.

"So would it also make you happy to know that I'm enlisting you to help out with the investigation? I think you could be of some use for a change."

Misa nearly choked on her wine when L said this. "Whaaattt?! Seriously? Of course this makes me happy! So does this mean you trust me now?" She was kneeling on the couch, her face dangerously close to L's.

L almost fell off the couch at Misa's sudden outburst. "No. It just means that I think you'd be of more use actively participating in the investigation than being here wasting our space and money." He grabbed a strawberry, dropped into his mouth and waited for her to be all pissy about his "wasting our space and money" comment. Instead, he felt _lips._ Misa briefly kissed him on the cheek. Like the moment when he'd first gotten a look at her in that tight, short dress, his expression completely changed. He was taken by surprise…again.

Misa was giggling. "That's alright. I wasn't really expecting you to say yes to that. Also that look on your face after I kissed you was interesting. I kind of like it." She chugged some more wine and put the almost empty bottle aside.

L touched his cheek right where Misa had planted a kiss on him. "You're definitely drunk. Any chance you might want to confess to being the Second Kira and to Light being the First Kira now?" asked L.

Misa laughed and looked at him. "Oh Ryuzaki, you're so funny. I bet you just want me to kiss you again!"

L did not have a response to that. He was more interested in seeing where she was taking the conversation. He decided to tend to the last few of his chocolate covered strawberries. No matter the outcome of this conversation, he was determined to eat every single strawberry.

Misa was staring at L now with a wicked smile on her face. L wasn't sure what to make of it, so he said nothing. He simply went back to picking at the strawberries and watched Misa out of the corner of his eye.

Misa inched closer to L so that their sides were touching. He pretended to care very little about the proximity of their bodies as he picked at his strawberries. Misa felt a little adventurous. She had to admit that she was curious about what it would feel like to run her fingers through L's messy hair. So she did. First she took a tress of his hair in between her fingers and felt it. It was surprisingly soft and feathery, not matted at all. L chose to not react to this small gesture. He was still facing straight ahead and at the bowl of strawberries in his lap so that Misa could only see his profile. Had she been looking right at his face she would have seen that he was puzzled by her unusual actions. Then, she ran her entire hand through L's messy hair. At this he had no option but to turn his head toward her. He gave her a quizzical look.

"Sorry, do you like this?" She asked with a smile on her face. L had a look of puzzlement on his face that she'd never seen before.

"It's not bad" he finally answered. It was as though he didn't know what to do. _This is kind of fun, I think he's actually lost! _She thought triumphantly. She took L's brief response as an invitation to run her hands through his hair again. Truth was, she was enjoying herself as well. _It's almost like petting a dog with really soft hair_ she told herself.

L reached for the last of the strawberries when a pair of warm, soft hands gently brushed against his cool ones. He stopped and then she grew bolder and took a firmer hold of his hand. L looked at Misa's face as she examined his hand in hers. The entire time he did not react, he simply allowed her to move into his personal space. He was allowing it for some reason, and this surprised both of them. Misa was now kneeling on the couch and she had finally managed to get L to face his entire body towards her.

Moving on the couch on all four, Misa continued to close in on L until their faces were a mere inch apart. L instinctively moved away but Misa followed, which ended up with him being propped up by his elbows on the couch and Misa hovering over him. Misa's bare thigh was brushing against L's.

Misa whispered over L's lips, "Ryuzaki…have you ever been kissed before?" L could smell the sweet scent of wine on her breath and he started to say in a warning tone, "Amane—" but he was caught off by Misa's forefinger on his lips, indicating that he should stop speaking.

In a barely audible whisper she told him, "Please, Ryuzaki, call me Misa now" and she closed the gap between their lips and kissed him gently. She brushed her lips against L's, who simply stayed still. She ran her tongue lightly over his bottom lip and entwined her fingers in his hair. When Misa felt that L wasn't reciprocating, she looked at him and saw that he seemed completely frozen in place. She moved off of him and he immediately backed away from her all the way to the other end of the couch.

Misa looked at L indignantly, as though he'd just openly rejected her and said "What's the deal?! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for YOU, out of all people, to smooch with a super-hot chick and you do nothing?! You're highly ENCOURAGED to participate in your own make-out session you know…" she said sarcastically.

L remained quiet, not looking at her. Misa continued her ranting when he suddenly got up off the couch and said in a quiet, controlled tone "Amane…Misa…you are free to come to the main investigation room whenever you'd like. It is strongly suggested that you get caught up with all the investigation details."

"Oh…yeah. I forgot about that bit." She laughed a little. Without another word, L turned towards the door and began exiting.

"You're leaving me? I was just kidding you know…" She said. The door closed and L didn't so much as look back at her. "Meh, you don't have to be so serious! I was just kidding!" She yelled at the closed door. A few seconds later, she got off the couch, threw on some pajamas and collapsed back onto the couch without even bothering to clean anything up.

-_End of flashback-_

And that's what happened two nights ago when L and not Light showed up to her little romantic evening. Needless to say she's been avoiding going to the main investigation room. Not because L was there, but because Light might have seen her kissing L on the surveillance tape of her apartment. If that was the case then maybe he was angry and didn't want to see her. That kind of made her happy because it meant he cared, but kind of made her sad because it meant he didn't want to see her.

_Whatever, HE CAN'T AVOID ME FOREVER, _She thought as she made her way down to the main investigation room.


	4. Plots

**Writer's Note: **_Hey everyone, so I guess I'm on a roll. Two chapters in two days (Yay for spring break!) As usual please let me know what you guys think! Finally I want to give a big THANK YOU to everyone who's reviewed, followed, or favorited my story. Thanks for the support 3_

_Enjoy Chapter 4!_

Light was working in the main investigation room doing some research on the new Kira killings. However, his mind was somewhere else. _How do I get Mikami to see L? There are only two ways: Either I somehow get Mikami to come here, or I get L to go out in the open…either will be easier said than done… _Light's thoughts were abruptly interrupted by L's voice.

"Light, what do you think?"

"Huh?" Light looked over at L who was at his computer as usual. "What do I think? About the Kira killings over these past few weeks?"

"Yes" replied L.

"To be honest, I have a theory, but there's still more to go through."

L turned to Light. "I have a theory too. I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it. I'm sure you've taken note of the fact that this second wave of killings is slightly different than the first. I have cause to believe that the more recent killings are the work of yet another Kira." This statement shocked the rest of the K.I.T. members. Light was not surprised that L already suspected that there was someone else involved.

"Ryuzaki! What makes you say that?" asked an alarmed Matsuda.

"The Kira we know killed criminals involved in sensationalized and televised cases. As we already deduced, this was because the original Kira, let's call him Kira 1, needed both a name and a face to kill. Kira 1's murders were easily distinguishable by this trademark. Then there is the Second Kira, Kira 2, who killed only a few televised criminals as well as innocents in order to prove his killing power. As we all know, Kira 2 was acting out of an interest to meet the original Kira, not out of some need to punish criminals. Furthermore, Kira 2 only needed a face to kill. Now this new Kira, Kira 3, punishes criminals in mass amounts like Kira 1, but what sets him apart from Kira 1, is that he has killed not only well-known criminals but lesser-known criminals, and innocents. And he has done so without the need of their names. This can only mean that Kira 3, like Kira 2, can kill with just a face."

Everyone in the room was impressed with this theory. Even Light, the only one in the room who could truly appreciate L's genius deduction was impressed. _Damned L, not only did he figure out that there's a new Kira, but he also knows that this new Kira has the Shinigami Eyes. At this rate he'll find Mikami. I have to kill him soon. _

"That's actually what I was thinking too. But Ryuzaki, don't you think that maybe Kira 1 and Kira 2 are now working together to create this new killing pattern? Maybe they're looking to confuse us to make it seem as though there is a third Kira?" Light asked.

L looked intently at Light and answered "Yes, I had also considered that possibility" _But of course, the chances of that are near 0% because you, Light, are Kira, and I know for a fact that you've had very limited contact with Amane, the Second Kira. I think this is just a ruse to throw me off the path of the third Kira._

Matsuda was in awe at both L and Light's theories. "Wow…Man you guys are really something" He said. "I don't know how we would do this without you two."

Chief Yagami stood from his chair and asked "So what do we do now Ryuzaki? Should we focus on trying to find this new possible Kira instead of investigating the old Kira? And what should we do about Misa Amane?"

Misa had arrived just in time to hear her name being mentioned. "Yeah, what should we do about Misa Misa?" She echoed the Chief.

Everyone turned to look at the attractive blonde now standing in the room with them. Most of the K.I.T. members were startled to see her there.

As soon as he saw her, Matsuda ran over to greet her "Oh, Misa Misa, when did you get here? We haven't seen you in a while, but you look great as always!" He said, sounding like an over-excited fanboy.

"Hi Matsu! I only just got here." She responded cheerfully.

L swiveled his chair around to face the team. "Everyone, from here on you can leave this new Kira to me. I will investigate this series of crimes personally. I would like you all to continue focusing your efforts into finding leads on the original Kira. As for Miss Amane...She will be joining me in the investigation of this new Kira as well." Everyone except Light was shocked at this last statement.

Aizawa stepped forward. "So does this mean that she's in the clear?"

L responded, "Well, given that we did find her hair on the tapes sent to Sakura TV by the Second Kira, I'm afraid she's still a suspect. " Misa rolled her eyes at this part. "That being said, we haven't found any other concrete evidence to connect Miss Amane to the Kira case since." Misa cheered up. "So…she's in the gray."

Misa wasn't quite sure how to take that but then Matsuda came up to her and said "Hear that Misa Misa?! You're in the Gray! It means you're almost as good as innocent!" He told her excitedly.

Misa squealed "Really?!"

L looked at Misa, unamused by her squealing. "I wouldn't be quite so jubilant. You're still going to be under surveillance, and you'll still be required to live here for some time."

Misa turned to L "Wait, so does that mean that I can go out freely?"

"Yes, but don't abuse it—" before L could finish his sentence, Misa had practically tackled him on his chair and wrapped him in a back-crushing hug. L was caught by surprised so he did not return the hug.

She let go of L and then proceeded to do a little victory dance "This is turning out to be the greatest day ever! Ryuzaki, you're the best!"

Misa's joyful proclamation of victory was interrupted by a cold, sarcastic voice "Well you've just had _so_ _much_ affection for Ryuzaki lately, haven't you Misa?" Light said in a tone which suggested that he knew of their little impromptu rendezvous in Misa's apartment.

L did not miss the tone or implication of Light's comment. He either didn't care, or chose to ignore it and instead swiveled his chair back around and continued to work on his computer as though nothing had happened. Everyone else didn't make much of Light's comment since they thought he was referring to the hug Misa had just given L a few moments before.

Misa, on the other hand had stopped cheering and was very worried now. _He knows…_She looked at Light straight in the eyes and saw that he was very serious. _He definitely knows. I need to talk to him and tell him what happened and make sure he understands that it was only fun and that it didn't mean anything to me. _

She tried to smile and walked up to him. "Oh Light, would you want to come up to my apartment later tonight?" She asked in a suggestive tone.

Unbeknownst to them, L was now paying very close attention to their side conversation.

Light took a moment to consider Misa's offer. _Yes Misa, I know what you and L did two nights ago. But after thinking about it, should my plan with Mikami fail, I could you use you to get to L. _"Now that I think of it, I feel that I have been overworking myself and not spending enough time with you. I'm sorry if I neglected you Misa. I'll go see you tonight"

Misa was ecstatic. "YAY LIGHT! This really is turning out to be the best day ever!" She jumped into Light's arms and sat on his lap while giving him kisses all over his face.

Light was embarrassed by her public display of affection and scolded her for being so open about their relationship in front of others.

"Alright Light, whatever you wish!" She said jumping back on her feet. She turned to Ryuzaki to ask what she needed to do for the day and she felt something she did not expect. She felt a little bit of _guilt._

_Funny, when I looked at Light, I felt nervous about him knowing what happened but I didn't feel guilty for what I had done with Ryuzaki. But when I looked at Ryuzaki, I felt, and still feel, like I've done something bad to him and I want to apologize. Shouldn't it be the other way around?_

"So um, Ryuzaki, what should I do now?" She sheepishly asked.

L turned to face her. They locked eyes for a split second.

Misa thought as she looked at him '_I don't see any trace of guilt or hurt, or anger on his face. I guess that should make me feel more at ease if what happened between us was just as meaningless for him as it was for me, right? Then again, I can't really read his expressions half the time.'_

"You can start by reviewing all the main case points. I would suggest looking at the crime patterns of each of our Kiras. Mogi has a compiled an extensive document detailing each important event in the Kira case. That should be a good start."

"Great! I'll get started right away!" She pranced towards Mogi who passed her a giant Compendium that must have weight about 10 lbs. Her face fell at the sight of it. "Whaaaa- THIS THING MUST BE HUNDREDS OF PAGES LONG!" She cried.

Mogi looked at her sheepishly and said "I'm sorry, it details every single death believed to be connected to Kira. He killed quite a few people as you can see."

Misa was starting to regret this. She grabbed the giant tome and walked to the only vacant spot with a chair. It was to the left of L. Light was to his right. Unfortunately there wasn't a lot of space for her to squeeze herself comfortably between the two men so she could be next to her Light. She sighed in resignation and sat down to begin her reading.

"Man…I just hope I can through all of this by tonight…" She mumbled to herself.

-_Later that night – _

Seven hours later, it was around 8pm and the only remaining members of the K.I.T. were Chief Yagami, Light, and of course, L. Misa had just finished reading about half the volume of all things Kira. She was exhausted and her brain felt like it was going to turn to mush inside her skull. Regardless, she was determined to see Light.

She yawned and stretched her arms over her head whilst looking to her right. She saw that L looked as though he had not moved an inch in seven hours. He was eating a piece of candy though which meant that at some point he must have moved to get it. She looked past L at Light. He seemed lost in thought.

"Light, I think I'm done for now. Please give me a few minutes to freshen up! I'll be right upstairs" She said, getting up.

Chief Yagami said his goodbyes and took off as well, leaving Light and L alone in the investigation room.

A few minutes passed in silence, until Light spoke. "Ryuzaki, I think I'm done for today too. I'm going upstairs to see Misa. I hope you don't mind giving us a bit of privacy."

L answered without taking his eyes off his computer screen. "You know I can't do that"

"Right, nevermind. Forget I said anything. I'll see you tomorrow" _Well so much for that. I guess I'll have to get creative then…_

Upstairs, Misa was running around trying to find something nice to wear, doing her hair and makeup again, and trying to find something to good for them to eat. _Ugh, I wasted my last wine bottle with Ryuzaki, and he ate all the chocolate strawberries. _

Before she was finished getting ready, the door opened and Light walked in. Misa was so excited she dropped what she was doing and immediately ran to the door. "Light! Finally we get to have a date night! I've been waiting for this for so long!" she wrapped Light in a tight hug.

After making idle small talk, Light suggested that they watch a movie.

"That sounds great Light! I believe we get tons of movie rentals here" She said excitedly. "What movie do you want to watch?"

Light had a plan. "I don't know, I'm kind of feeling something with a lot of action and explosions. Just something with excitement to end the day."

"Oh I know just the movie!" She said as she took a seat right next to Light. To anyone watching, they were just a normal couple staying in to watch a movie. Even L wasn't thinking much of it. For some reason he wasn't as interested in watching the couple as he probably should have been. Something about it just made him feel a little uncomfortable. He continued to type away at his computer while casually glancing at the cameras every couple of minutes or so.

At the most noisy scene of the movie, Light took Misa's hand. Misa had been focused on the movie till then. She looked at Light and he immediately took her into a hug. His face was now buried in Misa's hair. He started kissing her neck lightly and Misa took it as a romantic advance. She started to run her hands over Light's chest and undoing some of his shirt buttons. Light gently grabbed her hand and simply pulled her into a tight hug.

Light whispered into her ear "Misa…I need you to listen very carefully to what I'm about to tell you." Misa stayed quiet and still in his embrace. "Things are not as simple as you think they are right now. Ryuzaki isn't right about Kira. He's not getting any closer to catching him. I have a hunch, but I'll need your help to solve this case. But before that, I need to know that you trust me completely. If you do, squeeze my hand."

Misa did so without hesitation. Light continued "Perfect. I can't tell you any specifics right now, because they won't make sense to you. There's something I need you to do for me soon. It will seem like an odd request, but when I ask this of you, please promise me that you'll do it." Misa squeezed his hand again to let him know that she would.

Light was no fool. The loud sounds from the movie destroyed all possibility of their conversation being heard from wire taps. To anyone watching on cameras, the two of them looked like a couple that decided to have an impromptu makeout session in the middle of a movie. He was certain even L would see nothing out of the ordinary there.

Indeed L was watching them from the investigation room. _What's going on there…_He thought. He was trying to remain objective and analyze the situation for any possible suspicious activities. However, all he could hear from the audio was the movie. He couldn't see Light's face because it was obscured by Misa's hair, and the room was very dark. Still, there was just something about it that he didn't like and he couldn't really put a finger on it….

"Remember Misa, you can't act suspicious, and you can't let L think that there's something going on that he doesn't know about. I'll let you know what you have to do as soon as we're ready." And with that, Light kissed Misa passionately on the lips. She welcomed the kiss but before she could get carried away in the moment, Light let go of her and went back to watching the movie. She felt like she wanted more from him, but she knew he was done for now. Misa turned back to the movie and continued to watch with him.

Back in the investigation room, L had been holding an animal cracker tenderly between his thumb and forefinger. When he looked into the cameras to see what Misa and Light were up to, and saw them kissing, he tensed up. Before he knew it, the little animal cracker was crushed between his two fingers. He looked at the crumpled pieces of animal cracker fall onto the floor with disappointment. '_Bummer' _He thought as he picked up a new cracker and popped it into his mouth. '_Such a waste…'_


	5. Liars

**Writer's Note: **_Hello everyone! First off, thanks to all of you wonderful reviewers! I love reading all the comments (both good and bad). Second, I think this is my longest chapter yet. I actually had to cut it down for the sake of proof-reading and a speedy update. No worries though, a lot of that extra content went into sparking the next chapter, which is currently in the works. _

_Finally, some of you may have noticed my nice little avatar of Misa and L that I put up for this story. I kind of got inspired by it, but I did NOT draw it. Whomever drew it though is freaking awesome so I'm giving them a shoutout here if they ever see it haha. Anyways, enjoy chapter 5! _

...

It was the weekend, the only time when KIT members were not hard at work. They generally took this brief time to spend with friends and family, or in Light's case, to catch up on school work. L however, never took a day off. This was one of the "perks" to being the world's best detective.

While most people's activity cycles involved being awake during the day and sleeping at night, L had long ago lost all feel for a normal human schedule. He was awake at all hours and his sleep habits could be summarized in two words: scarce and sporadic.

It was now Saturday morning. Of course, to L, this normally wouldn't mean anything, but today was slightly special. The detective was perched on his usual spot at his desk, immersed in thought as he fiddled with some candy wrappers. Watari came into the room with a cart on top of which was a laptop. He rolled the cart next to L and addressed the young man.

"Good morning Ryuzaki. It's time" Said the older man.

"Perfect. Thank you Watari" Said L, getting up from his seat and walking in the direction of a door to the far right. "Please bring the laptop to the observation room. I'll have the meeting there. I assume Roger's ready?"

"Yes, he is" said Watari, rolling the cart with the laptop right behind L.

-_In the meantime-_

Misa was just waking up after a long night. She had been up late after she and Light finished the movie because she was updating her journal. She had been thinking about the incident with Ryuzaki more than she should have been, and felt that writing it all down would help. It turned out, Ryuzaki's rejection bothered her, a lot. It was like an insult to her as an attractive woman who never had a problem getting male attention.

She whipped the covers off her body and surreptitiously struck a sexy pose while pretending to stretch so she could show off her sexy attire. Last night, Misa wore her favorite short, silk nightgown. She knew there were cameras in her room and that because it was Friday night, Ryuzaki would be the only one watching. She thought her little performance was a clever ruse to get back at him for embarrassing her.

Misa stepped into the shower and let the warm water run over her sculpted body. _That guy rejected me…MISA MISA the super model...I seriously think he's either dead from the waist down or he's not interested in women...Still, I don't buy that he didn't feel the slightest bit turned on that night _She thought.

After her shower, she called Light to see if he was free to see her today. He didn't answer the phone. _Well, I guess I could stop by his apartment and see if he's home' _She thought, smiling to herself at the thought of surprising Light at his apartment. "Now, to pick out something cute to wear..." She said as she walked over to her closet.

-_At Wammy's House in London-_

A group of children sat huddled in front of a laptop with a gray screen with an "L" on it. They were the gifted, orphaned children at the institution called Wammy's House. Roger, Watari's right-hand man sat next to the laptop beaming at the children's curiosity and thoughtful questions. This was the first Q&A Session the children had ever had with the most gifted, and accomplished individual to ever pass through Wammy's House.

L's voice could be heard from the laptop loud and clear "Are there any other questions?"

The children argued excitedly amongst themselves to decide who should ask the next question. The winner was a girl that looked to be about seven years old. "L, could you tell me if there's something that you're not good at, or something you're scared of?" She asked with excitement.

The other children teased the girl about her question. "Yeah right! L's not scared of anything!" Said one of the boys. Another boy told her how silly her question was. The girl seemed unfazed by the protests, however.

"Something I'm scared of? Well, I suppose...monsters."

L's response made the children erupt into laughter. After a few seconds, they settled down again and listened carefully to words of their mentor.

-_At the KIT Headquarters-_

Misa was on her way out when she remembered something kind of important.

"Shoot" She said out loud. "Oh wait, I know..." She said to herself as she turned back around and headed to the main investigation room.

Misa walked into the main investigation room hoping that L would be there, but to her surprise, he wasn't. '_Well this is odd' _She thought. She was about to leave when she heard what sounded like children laughing. She looked around thinking she might have gone crazy. She eventually came to the front of a door on the far right. She pressed her ear to the door and listened to what was going on inside. '_It's definitely him. And he's talking to...children?! What the hell is going on in there?'_

Her curiosity got the better of her and she carefully turned the handle of the door and cracked it open a tiny bit. Through the slit she could see a couch overlooking a ceiling to floor glass wall. In front of the couch was L's hunched figure sitting on the floor in front of a laptop. '_The children are speaking to him through the laptop'. _Misa heard a young girl ask him what he was afraid of. What surprised her most about the question was the fact that she had addressed the detective as L. '_So they know that Ryuzaki is L? I thought that was top secret...who are these children anyway?'_ She wondered.

Misa was too afraid to shut the door again so she stayed still for a few minutes, barely breathing, waiting for a good time to move away. Ryuzaki made the children laugh again, and she took advantage of the added noise to slip away. She decided that she would wait for him by his desk. That wouldn't raise any suspicions.

A few minutes later, L walked into the main investigation room where Misa was waiting for him.

He walked toward his desk and didn't seem surprised to see her there. '_What are you up to Amane and why were you spying on me just now?' _Thought the detective as he walked to his desk. L's face remained stoic, not betraying any of the worry he was experiencing. He definitely did not want either of the two Kiras finding out about Wammy's House. While his identity was safe, Watari's may be compromised, and should the Kiras find out that the institute's purpose is to produce his successors, it may not bode well for the children either. '_That could be very bad. Amane, it appears that it may be time for a little performance of my own. Two can play this game' _He thought to himself.

She smiled and said "Good morning Ryuzaki!"

"Morning. I know I'm not the expert in social norms, but I believe it's considered rude to spy on others" L said.

Misa's heart dropped and her cheeks began to flush with embarrassment. _Damn._

"Well, you're one to talk! And here I thought I was the one with cameras in every nook and cranny of her apartment. Well, excuse me!" Said Misa sarcastically.

"Fair enough. You have a point" he said. There was a small pause before L sighed and then plopped down in his chair, slumped. It was the first time Misa had seen him sitting in a semi-normal way. She stared for a long moment. He wasn't eating any sweets and he wasn't fidgeting with anything, in fact, he wasn't doing anything at all.

She actually felt concerned now. _He let me win that argument and he's not saying any more about it. That's weird of him…"_Um, Ryuzaki, is everything ok? You look really bad." She said and immediately she regretted her words.

L looked at her un-amused and said, "Thanks for the compliment. You look great."

"I'm really sorry!" She gave him a small polite bow. "I meant to say you don't seem like yourself today. What's the matter?"

L didn't answer and simply looked down at his hands.

Misa didn't know what to do next. "Don't want to talk huh? Alright, cool. Whatever." She crossed her arms and pretended to be mad at him.

L still said nothing.

Misa decided to try a different approach. "So, um, you want some cake?" She asked him hopefully with a weak smile. He simply looked at her.

"Ok, FINE. Be an ass. I don't care anyway. I don't even know why I'm wasting my time here sitting with you...ass!" She said getting truly frustrated now.

L smiled a little at her genuine outburst and said "Yeah Misa, why are you sitting here wasting your time with me?"

"Oh right. I don't know how to get back in here if I want to go out. Like the passwords and stuff. Last time I left Light came back with me and he opened all the doors with the security things. I don't know any of that stuff and I feel like I should just in case you or Watari aren't around to let me in." She said.

"I'm afraid I can't give you that information. And even if I did, it wouldn't be useful to you for very long; a new password gets randomly generated every day. Watari sends the password to each KIT member through a process that I'm not going to discuss with you" He told her.

"So what the hell am I? I'm helping with the investigation now aren't I? Shouldn't I have the passwords too?" She asked taking a step towards him. L shifted in his seat back into his usual position and looked as though he was mulling over her comment.

"Well, the quick and easy solution would be if you go out with me instead and then I can type in all the passwords. That guarantees you access to Headquarters when you want to get back in" He said standing up from his chair. "Besides, I personally wouldn't mind going out for something a little bit more exotic than just cake. I'm kind of craving shortcake" He said now sounding more like his usual self.

Misa was speechless. L stood before her looking at her with his hands in his pocket. _Did he...just say he wants to go out somewhere? Together?_ There was a long pause as she processed what had just happened.

"Well...I was actually going to see..." She almost told him that she was going to see Light and wanted to go alone but she saw a look of disappointment flash across his face. He was now looking at his feet, and nervously moving one foot over the other. '_Well, Light didn't answer his phone so it could very well be a wasted trip. Not to mention that Ryuzaki seems like he's in a bit of slump and he helped me out before, so I should return the favor. Beside the whole apartment incident, he's been really nice to me.' _She thought.

"I was actually going to see if the new park and ride a few of miles from here was open! I think Light is busy today, so it's perfect that you're coming with me" She said, finishing her sentence.

L was surprised that she had agreed to that. _She said yes. That's quite interesting' _Thought L.

As the two walked out of Headquarters together, L turned to Misa and said "By the way, I had fully expected you to refuse my offer. I figured you would go to Light as soon as you got the chance."

Misa laughed nervously and said, "Well, you know what they say. You shouldn't judge a book by its cover, right?" '_Great Misa, you pretty much just called him judgmental. Way to be an idiot' _Thought the attractive blonde, slightly mortified.

...

L's chauffeur drove the couple to the park and ride in L's Bentley. They went around stopping at every other concession stand so that L could get his fill of sweets. Misa, on the other hand wanted to stop at every single ride. It was a good tradeoff because while they waited in line, L could enjoy his treats until it was their turn to ride. The two made their way through the entire park, having been tossed sideways, dropped from high places, carried at high speeds (forward and backward), and spun in circles in every direction. Misa was having a blast. L on the other hand wasn't too fond of the rides, though he tolerated them because Misa really wanted to ride them. Also, it allowed him to get really close to Misa without seeming too obvious, which he reluctantly had to admit he liked.

"I'm tired!" Proclaimed Misa as she plopped herself down on one of the park benches.

"We can go back whenever you like" Said L finishing up a bag of doughnut holes.

Misa stood back up and did something L didn't see coming. She enlaced her arm around his and started to walk, forcing him to go in stride with her. '_What are you doing now, you cunning woman?' _Thought L as he went along. He wasn't used to being like this with anyone, but he liked the feel of Misa on his arm, the way she seemed comfortable with him, and the way her breasts brushed against his arm as she held it close to her chest. '_That feels nice' _He thought, subconsciously licking leftover sugar off his lips.

"We can't go yet!" Declared Misa. "We haven't gone on the Ferris Wheel! It's about to be sunset too, it's the best time to go cause it's so—" Misa stopped herself from saying it but she was about to say that it was romantic.

"—So, pleasant?" Offered L.

"Yeah, that!" She said quickly.

Without thinking about it, Misa held on to L's arm long after they had reached their destination. The line was short so they did not have to wait long before the Ferris Wheel took them up. Misa had been right, it was a beautiful time to go on that ride. L, however, was lost in his thoughts '_What could she have possibly heard at my session with my successors today? She couldn't have been standing there for more than a mere seconds, minutes at most. I doubt she would have heard anything meaningful that would lead her or Light to investigate Wammy's House…'_ instinctively, L wanted to assume his usual sitting stance but couldn't because of the Ferris Wheel's lap bar. That was yet another thing he disliked about these contraptions. He couldn't sit like he normally did.

Misa noticed his slight predicament and chuckled. "Ryuzaki, why do you sit like that?"

"I have to sit that way. If I were to sit normally, my deductive skills would diminish by approximately 40%" He told her.

"Oh, I see. So does that mean that while you're strapped up like this you're of average intelligence?" She said playfully. L simply looked at her, unsure if that was a serious question. After a long silence, Misa asked "Isn't the sunset beautiful?"

"Yes, I would say so. Though I'm not sure how many more I'll be able to enjoy." Said L with a hint of melancholy.

Misa was confused by his statement. "What do you mean?" She asked. L was now closely gauging her reaction.

"We know that there are at least two Kiras out there, and now possibly three. It is not at all impossible that they will work together to bring down their common obstacles, mainly those who are trying to bring them to justice, myself among them." He said.

Misa didn't know what to say for a moment. She was scared and sad. "I don't want you to die, or anyone else for that matter! Ryuzaki, you can count on me to do whatever it takes to help catch Kira!"

She grabbed L's arm in one of her vice grips and looked him straight in the face. "I swear! I won't let anything happen to you or Light or anyone on the task force!"

'_She speaks with such conviction, it's almost impossible to believe that she's the Second Kira. But I can't be wrong…' _He thought. He felt the circulation to his arm stopping and said "Misa, you're crushing my arm."

Misa's cheeks turned pink. "Oh sorry" She said letting go of his arm. The two remained silent for the rest of the ride, Misa admiring the sunset with new determination, and L lost deep in thought. The ride back to Headquarters was just as comfortably quiet. As L had promised, he took care of all the security clearance once they reached HQ. As soon as they got back, L said a quick goodbye to Misa and then went on to the investigation room. He was again surprised when she followed him into the room. When he looked at her inquisitively, she said "Not so fast, if you're going to be here, then I'll stay too. I'm going to finish that whole volume on the Kira murders and then we can really start doing something about this once and for all!" She said excitedly.

L was actually impressed. She walked right by him, set her stuff down by his desk, sat next to his usual spot and began reading ferociously. '_She's surprised me yet again. I am not wrong about her….am I?' _Thought the detective before taking his seat next to Misa and getting back to work.


	6. Kira's Army

**Writer's Note: **_Hey y'all. Thanks to those who read and reviewed my last chapter! I love the comments, they keep me going. This is the longest chapter yet, and I think you will all like it. I don't want to give anything away so I'm going to stop saying things now. Enjoy!  
_

* * *

-_In an obscure coffee shop in the outskirts of town-_

An attractive woman with short black hair sat patiently waiting alone at a table for two. The waiter walked by several times to ask if she needed anything but she insisted on waiting for her companion before she ordered.

"Alright, miss, if you insist. But if you asked me, your boyfriend must be a serious fool to keep a beautiful lady like yourself waiting around!" Said the waiter before leaving her. The young woman gave the waiter a polite smile. When she was sure the waiter had left, she sighed and looked slightly sad. '_My boyfriend…right." _She thought longingly.

At that moment, as if on cue, the object of her affections walked into the coffee shop. He spotted her and made his way towards her.

"Sorry for making you wait, Kiyomi" Said Light.

"It's no problem at all. I understand you're very busy" Responded Kiyomi.

The waiter came back to take their orders of tea and coffee. "Alright, a tea for the beautiful lady, and a cup of coffee for the lucky guy who's with her" He said smiling at Light, who was not amused. Light had noticed that he had been hovering around him and Kiyomi ever since he'd sat down with her and he did not like it one bit.

"What's with that guy anyway?" He asked, clearly annoyed by the possibility of an eavesdropper.

"Oh him? I think he has a point, don't you?" Asked Kiyomi boldly. She was no fool. She admired Kira and by association, Light. However Kiyomi knew what she was worth, and though she was very attracted to Light, she wanted to ensure that he understood that she would not be in a one-sided relationship. She knew that he was casually dating Misa Amane because she was the Second Kira, yet she did not mind that as much because she knew that she was above Misa in intellect, Light's affections, and dare she think it, beauty. She was confident, at least on the exterior, that when the moment came for Light to choose between Misa and her, he would choose her.

"So how's the investigation going?" She asked after Light did not answer her previous question.

"The investigation was one of the reasons I asked to meet with you today. L's figured out that there is a third Kira. I need you to get in contact with Mikami and send him a very important message for me." He said, keeping his voice down so as to not be overheard by the pesky waiter.

"Of course, you know I will. But, do you think he's going to suspect Mikami? He's been very meticulous about covering his tracks" She asked, imitating Light by keeping her voice down. That was one thing that Light enjoyed about Kiyomi, she had great intuition for what he wanted from her. He did not have to micromanage her. When he had sent her a text asking to meet, she knew exactly what she needed to do without further instructions. She found a small, out-of-the-way coffee shop, miles from the heart of town where there would be little surveillance. He also did not have to tell her to keep her voice down or to look casual because she already knew.

Light always had his pick of beautiful women, but by far, he had to admit that Kiyomi was his most prized acquisition. Most of the women he'd dated were vain, annoying, boring, gossipy, or just plain _stupid. _But Kiyomi Takada was actually decent, more than that, she was the closest to an equal he'd ever found in a woman and that turned him on to no end.

The waiter arrived with their order and unceremoniously left them to attend other customers. Once Light was sure the waiter was out of earshot, he continued the conversation.

"I know because it's L. With him I can never be too careful. He's working on finding Mikami right as we speak, and he's even getting Misa to work with him to achieve this." At this last part Kiyomi could not help but let out a chuckle.

"He's asked _Misa _to help him? Is he _that _desperate?" She said trying to control her laughter.

"Yeah, I thought the same, but knowing L, I'm sure he has an ulterior motive. We'd best be prepared" Light took out a large yellow envelope from his jacket and passed it to Kiyomi, who took it in her hands and swiftly put it in her purse without needing explanation.

"I'd like you to mail this envelope to Mikami. He'll know what to do from there." Said Light.

"May I ask what's in here?" Said Kiyomi.

"I've written instructions to Mikami telling him to temporarily pass the notebook to someone else and only keep some pages for himself" Explained Light. Kiyomi was shocked that Light wanted to involve someone else in their plans.

"Who are you planning to have Mikami send the notebook to?" She asked, not knowing if he would even tell her. Light looked around to make sure no one would suspect anything malicious was going on.

"His name is Kyosuke Higuchi" Said Light with a malicious smirk on his face.

The rest of their meeting went quickly. Light paid the bill and afterwards, they both went to a small out-of-town hotel, where they spent the night….

…_Several weeks later…._

"L, do you know? Gods of Death Love Apples?" Asked Misa. At the mention of his name, L turned to her expectantly from his seat next to her. Everyone else in the KIT looked puzzled by her question. She had evidently been examining a copy of the letters that Kira had left L at some of his murder scenes.

"What if Kira thinks of himself as a God of Death? If Gods of Death love apples then…Kira loves apples!" She finished saying triumphantly looking at L as though she had just solved the entire case. L had an annoyed look on his face.

"Misa, you've been making silly deductions for the past hour, please get serious about this. We can't just look for someone with a dietary affinity for apples. That would most likely be a waste of time" He said dryly.

She crossed her arms and said "I AM serious! I'm just thinking out loud, that's all! And based on that letter sent by Kira, I think apples are something worth looking into because I'm sure Kira must have purchased apples in the past few months!" She said, exasperated.

"Fine, suit yourself." Said L nonchalantly as he unwrapped a mint and popped it into his mouth.

Misa stuck her tongue out at him.

"Watari! Are you there?" Said Misa loudly at no one in particular. Once again everyone in the investigation room turned to her. L looked at her slightly amused.

"You can't call Watari, he only-" but before L could finish his sentence, the giant "W" materialized on the screen and Watari's jovial voice could be heard through the speakers.

"Greetings Miss Amane, what can I do for you?"

"Could you please be a dear and make me a list of all recorded apple purchases in all stores around here?" She asked sweetly. L was about to protest again but before he got a word out she added "-And if we have any ice cream, could you please bring some?" '_That should appease him'_ She thought, smugly.

"Certainly" Said Watari before the giant "W" disappeared from the screen.

"You're going to go through all apple purchases in the area? You do realize you're chasing a false lead, right?" Said L.

The model threw her hands up in the air dramatically.

"How am I supposed to work with you when you're criticizing me all the time?!" She snapped at him.

"And how am I supposed to work with you when you're wrong all the time?" He quipped back.

Misa looked furious now.

Matsuda had long stopped doing work to watch the two argue.

"Man, ever since Misa Misa and Ryuzaki started working together, they've done nothing but argue. At this rate the two will end up getting married before this case is solved! Light have better be careful" He said laughing.

Chief Yagami snapped at Matsuda and said "That's nonsense Matsuda. You should focus less on gossiping and more on finding leads"

Matsuda's face turned a shade of pink as he put his head down like a chastised puppy.

On the outside, it seemed like L and Misa's relationship had not improved at all from the moment they met. However, in private, the two were quite cordial to each other, and even enjoyed eachother's company. L simply provoked her for two reasons: he didn't want to tip off Light in regards to his growing fondness for Misa and, it was so easy to get a rise out of her, it was tempting not to do it.

Then, Light, who had been silent the entire afternoon spoke up.

"Hey Ryuzaki, I think I may have found something. Take a look at this" He turned his laptop toward the detective. "I've noticed a new pattern of heart-attack killings. Alongside criminals, there are now dozens of reports of corporate leaders and notable employees who have died in a similar manner. Not only that, but the deaths have all occurred in all the major competitors of Yotsuba Corporation."

L considered this information carefully. He agreed with Light in that it was something worth looking into so he did a little research of his own. "Good analysis Light. I believe you have found something very interesting." He said after he was done evaluating the new developments. '_Could this be yet another Kira? I think I'm starting to see where this is going…' _Thought the shrewd detective.

"Yay Light! You're brilliant" squealed Misa from behind L. The other KIT members seemed uplifted by the new lead as well. The rest of the day went by quickly as they devised a plan to infiltrate the Yotsuba group. The plan would consist of Matsuda posing as a talent agent looking to get a contract for his client as a spokesperson for the Yotsuba Corporation. Then, if the Yotsuba Group members agreed to hire the spokesperson, the KIT would have access to Yotsuba's facility. From there, they would weed out Kira. It was an extremely dangerous mission. Matsuda, as well as the person acting as his client could very well end up dead if things went wrong.

"Well, we know what Matsuda's going to be doing. Now we just need to find someone to play the role of the spokesperson" Said L thoughtfully while stacking sugar cubes into his coffee cup.

There was an uncomfortably long silence in the room. Without this piece, the plan could not be carried out.

Misa finally broke the silence, turned to L and said, "I'll do it. I understand that this is dangerous, but I promised to do everything I could to help and I meant it" She said seriously.

"I agree." Said Light. "You're pretty much the only one amongst us who can do it anyway. So it's settled that Misa's our spokesperson." He said quickly. He was right, of course, but Misa was still hurt by how business-like Light was being about her risking her life. She knew he wasn't the heroic type when it came to her, but this was a bold display of indifference on his part.

"Out of the question" Said L forcefully. Misa looked at him, surprised.

"Well, who else did you have in mind? She's the only one who could do it and that's obvious. It makes sense." Argued Light. '_Not to mention that if Misa gets killed, that's one less liability I have to worry about...'_ He thought. "...And yes, it's dangerous, but we're all putting ourselves in danger every day to do this. It comes with the territory-" Light was cut off by L before he could finish his speech.

"I was actually thinking of contracting Weddy to do it. Unlike Misa, her real identity is unknown to the public so even if Kira were to try to kill her, he would not be able to do it. At least not unless this is the Kira that can kill with just a face" Said L, lightly biting his thumb. "Based on his victims though, I believe that this is not the case."

'_In fact, I am 99% certain that this is an entirely different Kira altogether_' He thought.

"But Weddy's not a famous supermodel! They'll never hire a nobody to be their spokesperson. Misa is the clear choice for this assignment!" Retorted Light.

Before L could counter, Misa stepped in.

"It's alright Ryuzaki. Light has a point. He has very good reasons why he wants me to go…" She said quietly.

L noted the way she was looking down at the floor, clearly hurt by Light's carelessness. L had to admit that Light was correct, but for personal interests, he preferred to send Weddy. He didn't want to put Misa on the front line. She was the perfect choice, yes, but he would rather keep her out of this and work with Weddy than send her to take such a risk. They could fabricate ads, plant false articles about Weddy and claim that she's a foreign star trying to cross into the Japanese market. That would not be too bad. Misa on the other hand was a public figure. It would be a cakewalk for Kira to kill her and the thought of that happening made L feel _lonely. _

L turned to Misa, looked her straight in the eyes.

"If you're going to do this, you need you to be sure. We can make it work with Weddy"

Misa could easily get lost in those gray orbs. '_I think I'm seeing things…' _She thought for a second as she was charmed by his large doe eyes piercing right through her. She could almost swear that he was silently pleading with her not to go.

"No. I want to do this" She said meeting his gaze with her own resolute one. And just like that, his eyes left hers.

"Very well. We'll set the plan in motion tomorrow." Said L walking away from the group with his hands in his pockets. With that, everyone else began to depart.

Misa stayed put hoping to catch a moment alone with Light. However, he simply packed up his things, walked to her, kissed her lightly on the lips and told her that he'd see her tomorrow. Then he was gone. She stayed standing in that same spot until everyone left.

L came back in holding a box of chocolates. He set them down by his desk and then walked over to Misa. He got up very close to her face like he sometimes did, probably without thinking that he was invading her personal space.

"You seem…off. Are you having second thoughts about the mission?" He asked. She simply shook her head without saying a word. "Do you have reservations about it?" He asked next. This time she nodded her head, indicating that she did. "Well?" He asked softly.

"Thank you Ryuzaki for worrying about me before. I'm not having second thoughts but I'm not 100% sure I won't mess up…Actually, I'm really afraid." She finally said looking at the floor. "I could use a hug right now", she said smiling weakly.

L looked at her thoughtfully as if considering how to go about doing what she asked before simply stepping forward and extending his arms to her. She immediately ran into his embrace. L did not expect her to run into him with such force, and he was taken aback for a second. She wrapped her arms tightly around his torso and put her face against his chest. The two hadn't been this physically close since the day at the park and before that, the incident at Misa's apartment.

L wasn't sure what to do. He wasn't very adept at these things. He would offer her chocolates, but he knew she probably wouldn't eat them. While coming up with a solution, he pushed her back gently. She gave him a puzzled look and he in return he looked at her with such intensity, it made her feel shivers down her spine. It was at moments like these that Misa wished she were a mind reader so she could know what L was thinking. Their faces were but an inch away. Part of her was sending warning signals, telling her that she was too close, but an even greater part of her was excited about the thought of what could happen with Ryuzaki.

"Misa, I gave some thought to this, and I believe I owe you something from weeks ago" He said, referring to the apartment incident.

"...Yeah?" Said Misa sounding breathy.

With that L brought his lips down to hers gently, barely touching them. She froze there, getting a feel for his lips, wanting more. He gauged her reaction and upon seeing that he met no resistance, he kissed her again, except a bit deeper. This time, Misa was more prepared and kissed him back slowly, then eagerly, as she yearned to taste more of L. A small moan escaped her lips, which caused the detective to pause and look at her face for any sign of disapproval. As soon as she felt him moving away, however, she grabbed the back of his head and brought his mouth back down to hers.

L was momentarily taken aback by her sudden assault. She pressed her body against his, going on tiptoe to keep their mouths interlocked. He felt her against him...so much of her soft feminine form, pressed into his body, it was starting to become intoxicating. L tentatively held her by the hips, while Misa laced her arms around his neck and buried her fingers in his hair. L could feel Misa's soft breasts pressed against his chest and it excited him to the point that his pants were getting a quite tight. With tentative confidence, he grasped Misa's hips firmly against his. Their breathing quickened, and the pace of their kiss hastened with it. Misa had started out in control but as L became more and more frenzied with desire, he too began to kiss her back with a fervor that matched hers.

His inhibitions abandoned him as his hands started to wander over her lithe form, sliding up the curve of her waist. Feeling hot and light-headed, Misa stepped forward into him, causing L to step back until he hit the hard surface of the desk. Realizing that she'd trapped him against the desk, L stopped kissing her as he looked at his current predicament.

'_Not yet Ryuzaki, we're not done here' _She thought as she kissed him again, only this time, L kept his eyes open and wouldn't cooperate. It was too late. He'd already snapped out of the lustful high they were both just in. She realized what was happening and stopped herself to look him in the eyes. L gently pushed Misa back a few inches and gave himself space to move away from the table. He diverted his gaze from Misa's and looked down at the floor, his long dark bangs obscuring his eyes.

He cleared his throat and said "Misa-san, I'm sorry. I transgressed too far" He said taking the responsibility upon himself. His heart was still racing, just like that night at her apartment when he froze at her kiss.

"No. It's ok, I went too far too" She said, still dazed.

L resumed his usual slouch and put his hands in his pocket, his eyes never leaving the floor.

She moved to see his face and noticed that he had a slight blush. Without saying a word, he walked toward his chair and sat on it as usual.

"I need to prepare some final details for tomorrow. Please don't take this the wrong way, while I find your company very…agreeable, I would like to be alone right now." He said without looking at her.

"Right! Eh, no offense taken, I swear!" She said agitated. She took off immediately, still shaken by the recent event. Before she exited completely, she heard the detective's voice from behind her.

"Oh Misa, before you go, I should tell you that while you should be afraid of Kira, I will do everything in my power to keep you safe in all this. You have my word" He said from his chair.

She turned around and smiled. "I believe it. After all, you're the best detective in the world, the top three, actually! I know I'm in good hands" She said cheerfully as she walked away, feeling much better about the situation at hand.

Once she was gone, L let himself smile and savor the sweet memory.


	7. Yotsuba

**Writer's Note: **_Hello everyone. I wanted to say how much I adore all the comments you guys leave me and how much fun I have reading them. It's great to see that this story is being well received. Having said that, I read over my first few chapters and I can't help feel that I could have written them better. I feel like for the first few chapters I didn't write enough, I kind of rushed through them out of fear of making them too long, and to me, they just feel a little unfinished at certain parts. Because of this, I'm re-editing a couple of chapters (maybe all of them lol) and making adjustments. The story line and events will remain the same so no worries there. Just wanted to let you guys know in case you ever go back and realize some things are different, this is why! I've already re-released chapters 1, 2, and 6 as well._

* * *

It was just before dawn, and a petite blonde figure sat wide awake, looking out her living room floor-to-ceiling window. Misa hadn't slept a wink the night before due to the fact that today she and Matsuda were going to meet with the Yotsuba Group. That wasn't the only reason though. Every time she closed her eyes to try to sleep she would relive the moment of passion she had with L the previous day. She would get all hot and bothered, and would need to get up and do something distracting to take her mind out of the gutter. Normally, Misa would just write these things in her journal, but when she went to retrieve the journal to jot down the previous day's event, she couldn't find it. Naturally, she panicked thinking that all her secrets were now at the hands of some pervert. Luckily, she managed to find it inside her night table drawer, one of the many spots where she's been known to leave the thing. Misa was not OCD when it came to organization. However, she found it strange that her journal was there since she could have sworn she left it on top of her night table, not inside. '_Whatever. I probably forgot I had put it in the drawer...' _She thought as she went to the living room, where she remained awake, writing.

_'That thing that happened with Ryuzaki was wrong. I'm supposed to love Light and kiss only him. It's just that it felt so good to be wanted like that. The way he held me and touched me, and kissed me...' _Wrote Misa, blushing. '_...it was like fireworks! Who knew the brainy weirdo had it in him?! I, Misa Amane, am pleased with Ryuzaki's kissing skills. At first it was a shy kiss, but then he really went for it and it was...well...let's just say that I might consider going on break with Light for one night...JUST KIDDING. I would never do that to my Light!' _She continued, now fighting with herself on the page. Misa groaned inwardly as she looked at the time. It was 6 a.m.

'_I should really try to get some sleep. I won't be of much use today if I'm tired.' _She thought.

She got up and walked to her bedroom. She was wearing regular pajama pants and a tank top this time. She decided against wearing lingerie to bed since that might give L the hots for her and she wanted to avoid any more complications.

-_Later that day-_

"Hurry up, Matsu! We still have two more stores to go to and we barely have an hour!" Yelled Misa as Matsuda followed behind her carrying 3 large shopping bags and two boxes full of clothes, shoes, and countless accessories.

"Right, Misa Misa. I'm right behind you...just one question. Why do you need all this stuff? I mean, you're a model, don't you already have nice clothes?" Asked Matsuda while trying to balance his burden.

"Silly Matsu, the clothes I wear for modeling belong to the designers! They sometimes let me keep them but not always. And besides, the clothes I wear for modeling are hardly appropriate! I need to look like an executive office babe, if you catch my drift" She said with a wink.

"Right..." Said Matsuda miserably. He was having a busy afternoon. This was the second time that Misa had asked him to come out with her, and before that she had gone out with Mogi. It seemed like every time she went out she needed a KIT member to go with her. It didn't make much sense to him why she didn't go out on her own. She could get into headquarters with just her finger prints and face recognition. That's what they all did when they didn't feel like entering the passwords.

Once they had arrived at headquarters, Misa made Matsuda enter all the passwords while she just stood and watched him. He was confused by her behavior. The two walked into the main investigation room where the rest of the KIT members discussed final details of the plan. Matsuda dropped the bags and boxes next to the couches and then fell upon it, exhausted from the shopping trips. Misa looked him over.

"Don't tell me you're tired already! I really hope not because I just realized, I'll need to go out once more..." She said innocently.

Matsuda looked alarmed. "Misa Misa, forgive me, I don't mean to sound rude, but...why don't you go on your own? Is it too much to carry by yourself?" He asked her sheepishly.

Misa cocked her head and gave him a puzzled look. "Of course not Matsu. I'm perfectly used to shopping by myself but I just need one of you guys to come with me so that I can get back into headquarters. Watari doesn't send me the daily password since I'm not officially one of you guys of whatever. It's all Ryuzaki's fault because he won't let me get the passwords like you guys do!" She said, glaring at the detective.

At this point, all the KIT members looked completely confused. They were all looking at Misa as though she were speaking nonsense. Some looked at L for clarification but he remained silent as he worked at his computer, sipping coffee. Light was annoyed with Misa for being so dumb. To him, it was obvious that this was some plan of L's to limit Misa's movements. If she went out supervised at all times, then she would not be able to kill anyone.

"That's not how it works at all!" Said Matsuda shaking his head. "Watari doesn't send us any passwords. It's only one password, but you can also get in through finger prints and face recognition." He finished explaining.

"WHAT?! So you're telling me that I've been able to come and go by myself from the very beginning?!" Yelled Misa getting red in the face. She thought of the many occasions in which she had wished to visit Light but did not because she thought she would not be able to get back in, the handful of times that she had asked to be escorted some place by a KIT member, the times that she had gone out with L himself to run errands, and especially that one time that she'd basically gone out on a date with L to the park and ride. All because of a lie he made up. Misa was now furious.

"Yep. I don't know where you got that stuff from! It's pretty creative though, don't you think so Ryuzaki?" Said Matsuda, blissfully unaware of the hell he'd just unleashed.

"Matsuda...please stop talking now..." Muttered L, knowing full well what was coming next and dreading it.

Misa walked towards L angrily. "YOU! Look at me you liar!" She said, pointing a finger right in L's face. "You're a cheat you know that? You play dirty, Ryuzaki! I played right into your hand like an idiot!" She yelled at him.

"I accept your accusation. Now you know the truth, is there any other problem?" asked L calmly. His calmness only made Misa more irritated.

"YES! You TRICKED me into going on a DATE with you to the park and ride...you PERVERT!" She continued, shocking everyone else in the room. L looked at her wide eyed. Everyone, including Light was now staring at him and Misa. Before L could say anything, Light spoke up.

"What the hell do you mean by a date? You went out with Ryuzaki while I wasn't here, Misa? How do you think that makes me feel?!" He said, raising his voice to feign hurt.

Misa was alarmed. She hadn't meant to say that much, it just came out. "Light, it's not what you think. Nothing happened! It's hard to explain, can we talk? Please?" She asked sounding worried. L was the one who answered for him though.

"I'm afraid that's going to have to wait. It's almost time to meet with the Yotsuba Group. I think we all agree that takes precedence over this misunderstanding." Said L while stirring his super sweet coffee. As exquisite as the situation was getting, all the other KIT members assented with a nod of their heads. Misa was outnumbered as even Light agreed that their talk could wait. She turned furiously toward L once more.

"I hate you, you're ruining my relationship Ryuzaki! I thought you were my friend!" She yelled at L. It was Light who spoke next.

"Misa, stop being dramatic and calm down and focus on the mission. This is more important right now." Said Light, crossing his arms over his chest. She looked at him as he sat there, the very high and mighty voice of reason.

"Fine...if that's what you want Light." She said, defeated. "But I'm telling you right now Ryuzaki, once this thing with Yotsuba is over, I'M GONE. I'm going to deliver Kira to you and then I'm leaving!" She said storming off before L could reply.

"Very well..." Said L even though she was already out of earshot.

"Do you mean that Ryuzaki? If Misa manages to flush out Kira, you will let her go?" Asked Light, un-amused by Ryuzaki's recent actions. It was true that he did not care for Misa, but she still was a great weapon in his arsenal, and as such, he did not want Ryuzaki meddling with her too much. If Misa were to be cleared of all suspicion and released, that would be great.

"Yes, Light, I will." He answered simply.

-_A bit later -_

Matsuda and Misa sat in a fancy lobby on the top floor of the Yotsuba Corporation. Matsuda was there as Misa's manager and his false name was Taro Matsui. Misa was there as herself, of course, and she dressed the part in a form fitting mid-thigh length button-down dress and high heels that screamed sexy corporate babe. Her hair was completely loose and she wore alluring red lipstick. Upon arrival, they had been escorted by two bodyguards who instructed them to wait outside two very large double doors, behind which they could only assume were the Yotsuba Group members. The two looked at each other, and then at the two body guards wearily. Matsuda lowered his head and turned to Misa as though he was talking to her.

"L, I have a hunch that whatever they're talking about in there probably has a to do with Kira. I think that's why they're taking precaution with these body guards. If only we could draw them away so I could listen through the door..." Whispered Matsuda into the microphone disguised as a small pin on his shirt collar.

"Don't do anything stupid Matsuda. Remain there for now." Said L, before Matsuda could continue.

Both Matsuda and Misa had tiny earpieces as well and could hear L. However, Misa disregarded his order. '_If that's what Matsu needs to get some dirt on this Kira, then Misa's going to do it!' _She thought. She turned to the bodyguards and gave them a smoldering, seductive smile.

"I'm in need of freshening up. Can one of you strong handsome guys please escort me to the ladies room?" She said innocently. Matsuda gaped at her for going against L's orders, but did not stop her.

"..." L gave a defeated sigh as he heard Misa ask the body guards to take her to the bathroom. '_This woman...never listens...' _He thought, un-amused.

The bodyguards looked at each other suspiciously but then one agreed to escort her, telling her to "make it quick." She smiled at him as she took his arm and walked with him down the hall way and around the corner. The bodyguard blushed. A minute later, there was a loud scream and the remaining bodyguard and Matsuda wondered what was going on. The scream sounded like Misa's.

"You! Stay here and DON'T MOVE. I'm going to see what the hell that was" Said the bodyguard to Matsuda as he took his gun out and ran in the direction Misa and the other bodyguard had gone.

"Misa, what are you doing?" Asked L seriously.

Misa was screaming inside the bathroom. The first bodyguard came in immediately, soon followed by the second '_Perfect now I have both of you away from Matsu' _She thought. _  
_

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Demanded the second bodyguard.

"There's...there's...THERE'S A GIANT SPIDER IN HERE! MISA MISA IS DEATHLY AFRAID OF SPIDERS!" Screamed Misa as she started to wail dramatically.

The first bodyguard was petrified because as it turned out, he was genuinely afraid of spiders. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Yelled the second bodyguard at the first bodyguard. They both searched for the spider but could not find it. Yet Misa continued to cry and insist that there was and they should keep looking.

In the meantime, Matsuda was alone. He took the opportunity to get up close to the double doors and listen. He could hear pieces of the conversation inside. "...next week...sooner...kira...kill..." were the words that Matsuda could pick out. '_That's it! These guys are planning to have Kira kill someone next week!' _He thought as he got up closer against the door to listen more. Then, unexpectedly, the latch on the doors gave way and Matsuda fell through, into the conference room where eight pairs of surprised eyes stared at him. Then came the most awkward silence in corporate history.

"WHO ARE YOU?!" Demanded one of the board members, getting up from his seat. The others stayed silent, awaiting the answer.

"Um...eh...I'm...I'm Taro Matsui...of Yoshida Productions?...um Misa Misa's manager! I'm here with...her...um. Sorry I tripped and fell through your door!" He said bowing deeply and inwardly praying for his life.

"What. The. Fuck" Said Light from the investigation room. "Just what are these two doing?! They're botching everything!" He said angrily, as he listened to the audio feed.

L simply stayed silent, gripping his knees and listening, a hint of a frown on his face. The rest of the KIT members were speechless. Everything seemed to be going wrong.

"What did you hear? Are you a spy from one of our competitors?" Demanded another board member. Matsuda was now sweating bullets. He wasn't good at talking under pressure, and one of these men was believed to be Kira. For all he knew he could be dead any minute now. Luckily the bodyguards had returned with Misa.

"Look, here's Misa Misa! See? I'm just her manager! I didn't hear anything, I was just outside stretching and I tripped and fell!" Said Matsuda laughing nervously as he brought Misa forth to the board members.

"Oh Matsu, you're always so clumsy!" Said Misa smiling.

The board members were immediately taken with Misa's appearance. They eyed her disgustingly from head to toe, as if undressing her with their minds, and some even had to loosen their shirt collars.

"It is a pleasure to be acquainted with all of you!" Said Misa bowing deeply, giving them view of her cleavage.

"Ah, yes. I recall now we had a meeting request from a Mr. Matsui to introduce to us this lovely young woman. I believe it was about a possible contract with his client, Misa Amane, as a spokesperson for Yotsuba Corporation." Said another one of the board members, a very intelligent looking man.

"Yes! That's it. Thank you for remembering all that" Said Matsuda bowing again. The situation was still tense but at least the board members now believed his story. They all introduced themselves and asked to see Misa's portfolio and list of references. They asked her and Matsuda some basic questions, which they answered well enough, smiling through their teeth the entire time. In the end, she was invited back for two rounds of interviews the following day as well as the week after. All those in the KIT headquarters gave a sigh of relief.

"I can't believe those two managed to get the job done after all" Said Chief Yagami, wiping the sweat off his forehead with his handkerchief. "They nearly gave me a heart attack" He said.

An hour later, the door to the main investigation room opened and in walked a very triumphant Misa grinning from ear to ear, and a very disgruntled Matsuda.

"We're back!" She sing-songed as she walked in. "And I'm pretty sure we're in, right Matsu?" She said cheerfully.

"Right..." Groaned Matsuda. His knees were still shaking from the day's events. He was ready to go home, have a few drinks, and then go to sleep.

"Matsuda, when you were left alone without bodyguards, did you learn anything noteworthy?" Asked L.

Matsuda perked up at the question. He'd completely forgotten to mention that important part.

"Yeah! I'm certain that I overheard them talking about Kira! They were saying how they would have Kira kill someone next week, or something like that. I'm positive!" He said. The KIT members were excited with the news. This was by far the most significant lead on Kira that they had come upon in months.

"Good work today you two" Said L looking at both Misa and Matsuda. Misa was beaming at his praise, long forgetting their argument earlier that day. Matsuda was equally as elated because he finally did something useful.

'_Everything is going as planned...' _Thought Light with a sinister smile.

"Just try not to take so many liberties next time. You guys had us worried there for some time" Said Light, with his arms crossed over his chest disapprovingly.

Matsuda scratched his head and laughed nervously. Misa ran over to him and said "Oh Light you were worried about me weren't you?" She said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Oh course I was. And I was also angry because you deviated from the plan. Don't do that next time, ok?" He said as he pulled her into a hug.

"Yeah...sure!" Misa said unsure if she should be happy because Light cared for her, or upset because he had been angry with her. "Do you want to do something tonight to celebrate? I can make us an awesome dinner and we can have our talk over dinner!" She said excitedly.

He looked at her and said "Alright, sounds good, Misa." In truth, all Light wanted to do was go home and relax. However, in light of recent events, he figured that maybe he should pay more attention to Misa. It was possible that L was trying to pull a fast one on him by getting close to Misa. He knew the chances of the model leaving him for Ryuzaki were pretty much 0 but the occasional date with Misa could only help him solidify her affections for him.

"Great!" She squealed as she pecked him on the lips. "I'm going out to get some ingredients I'll be back in half an hour, I promise!" She said and before she exited the room, she turned on her heel and said "Oh, and I'm going BY MYSELF." as she stuck her tongue out at L.

Right as Misa left, Light's cell phone went off. It was Takada. She sent him a text saying that she needed to see him as soon as possible and it sounded urgent. Light began to gather his things and L looked at him slightly puzzled.

"Aren't you going to have dinner with Misa?" He asked.

"Not tonight. A friend just texted me about something important and I have to go. Please give Misa my apologies" Said Light as he exited the room.

L knew it was probably Takada. The day that he met Misa at To-oh University's campus, he had seen Light with her. He was certain that they were still going out now, which meant he was two-timing both Misa and Takada. It wasn't his business and at the time, he didn't really care for it either. However, for some reason now L wasn't as indifferent about it. He couldn't help but think how lucky Light was to have such beautiful women throwing themselves at him. He'd never had such a thought before, and he wasn't sure why he was having it now.

Misa returned to headquarters within half an hour like she promised. She went upstairs through the elevators and started to cook right away. Within an hour, most of the food was ready and she wondered when Light would be coming up. Just then, she heard a knock on her door. She threw her heels back on and let her hair down again. She still wore the sexy button-down dress she had on earlier but she had retouched her make-up and put on lingerie underneath. "Coming, Light!" She yelled as she reached the door, swung it open and, without thinking, threw herself happily into a familiar pair of arms that were definitely not Light's.

She was in _his _arms. Again. It was a very surprised Ryuzaki that now held her a mere inch from his face.

"What are YOU doing here?! And where's Light?" She said not pushing back from him. She looked him dead in the eyes, their height a little more equal now that she was wearing heels.

"I'm afraid he's not coming to have dinner with you, Misa." He said looking into her eyes as well, not making any move to release her.

Misa's heart sunk. '_Light is standing me up?' _She thought dejectedly.

"I don't believe you. You're a liar Ryuzaki" She said, narrowing her eyes at him. She desperately searched his dark gray eyes for any sign of deceit. She found none, but then again, since when could she read L like a book?

"No, I assure you, I'm actually telling you the truth this time. And if you don't believe me wthen time will prove it to you. He's not coming" He said. He hated the look of bitter disappointment that crossed her pretty face. Misa wore her heart on her sleeve, and even if she tried to hide her feelings, he usually could guess them pretty accurately.

Misa didn't say anything. She diverted her gaze from L and blinked back a few errand tears that were threatening to spill out. She was frozen in place, having mixed feelings. She was sad and disappointed because Light had let her down yet again. She tried not to keep tabs on all of Light's mistakes because she feared that at the end of the bill, the man she thought she loved came up short. She didn't want to believe that Light really hadn't grown to care at all for her. She turned a blind eye each time he disappointed her, always making excuses for him, giving him chances, believing that once day he'll change into the loving boyfriend she dreams for him to be. And alas here she stood an idiot. A well-dressed, well-behaved, idiot with a warm, loving dinner for two set up, which would now serve as a bitter reminder of her foolish hopes.

L realized that Misa was sniffling. She wasn't crying but he knew she wanted to. He moved his hands from her sides to close behind her back as he pulled her into a hug. Misa welcomed the hug though she did not allow herself to cry still. She was at least thankful that Ryuzaki, as much of a jerk as he was, seemed to care for her. She drew her face up and looked at L in the face. His arms encircled her completely and held her body against his. She could feel the slender muscles underneath his shirt and she could not help but blush. She remembered last time they had been in a similar position, they had been lip-locked in fit of passion. The memory sent a pleasurable chill down her spine and she wondered if Ryuzaki was thinking the same thing.

L was conflicted. On the one hand he was offering comfort to a friend, yet on the other hand, he was still a man holding a very attractive woman against him. One, which he was very much attracted to. He noticed she had angled her face towards his, making her lips more accessible than before. If he wanted to, he could easily claim her lips with his. And he did want to, _very_ much.

The two stood in that same position for a minute. Judging by her body language, Misa was practically begging him to kiss her, but L just wasn't biting. He slowly released his hold on her, and she stepped back reluctantly, visibly annoyed.

_ 'I can't believe that was it! I was practically fawning over him and he did nothing! I hate all men...' _Thought Misa, suppressing the urge to scoff. Her annoyed look only told L one thing: he'd messed that one up.

"Well, I guess this is goodnight" Said Misa, crossing her arms over her chest, feigning disinterest. Before she had the chance to leave, L quickly thought of something that might appease her.

"Actually Misa, I had another thing I wanted to tell you. Two things, actually." He said quickly. "The first is that Light did ask me to send his apologies."

At this Misa rolled her eyes.

"That was the reason I came here, but the other thing I wanted to tell you was that I apologize for lying to you about the passwords. I thought you had been spying on me that day and because of that I wanted to keep track of all your movements." He said.

Misa remembered that day he had been talking to a bunch of children through a computer. She had questions about that, but she knew better than to ask them now. For now she was content with just his apology.

"Thanks. No hard feelings! I promise" Said Misa. Then she got an idea. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to be hungry, would you?" She asked, looking hopeful.

"I'm not hungry. I'm famished." Said L giving her a slight smile of his own.

"Well that's perfect! You are more than welcome to have dinner with me then!" She chuckled, delighted. She turned and walked into the apartment, motioning for L to come in as well.

"That would be...lovely." He said not believing what just happened. He walked inside, relieved that perhaps he hadn't messed things up too badly after all.

-_In a dingy hotel on the outskirts of town-_

Light walked into the hotel room that Takada had rented under her alias. The lights were off and there were candles everywhere.

"Kiyomi, are you in here? What was that important thing you wanted to talk about?" Asked Light.

"I'm right here Light" Said Kiyomi seductively, walking out of the bathroom, wearing absolutely nothing.

Light's eyes suddenly became wide, and his jaw dropped. He appreciatively ran his eyes over Kiyomi's figure as she drew nearer. When she finally reached her target, she proceeded to massage his now growing erection.

"What took you so long huh?" She whispered into his ear. Light realized she had asked him a question and said "Misa wanted me to go to some stupid dinner with her. But clearly I made the right choice tonight" He said, toying with one of Kiyomi's breasts. '_Well looks like I win again Misa' _Thought the short-haired woman. Kiyomi took Light's mouth in hers, and the rest was history.


	8. Unraveling

**Writer's Note:** _I'm back with another chapter! It's another long one but I hope you guys like it! Thanks for reading this far and don't forget to post your reviews! =]_

* * *

_..._

Misa was happy that she would not be eating alone tonight. She waited for L to walk into the apartment before she closed the door behind him and kicked off her high heeled shoes by the couch. L waited silently for her to get comfortable. Once she was free of her heels, she led him into the dining room, where most of the food was already set up. As she walked in front, L ran an appreciative glance over Misa's figure. He hadn't gotten the chance to take a good look at her in that dress, and he had to admit that she looked amazing in it, although, he thought she looked stunning in anything she wore. Misa suddenly turned around and caught him checking her out, which caused her to blush.

"Um, well this is it!" She announced, motioning to the three-course meal she had made. "I know it's not your usual meal of cake, chocolates and coffee but I promise it's really good!"

"Everything looks great," Said L, nibbling on his thumb, observing the food. He couldn't even recall the last time he had a wholesome dinner like this one.

Misa walked up to her radio and put on some soft piano background music. L looked at her curiously.

"Oh sorry, do you not like this music?" She asked, frowning.

"No, this music is fine, I just didn't know you listened to classical music." He said simply.

"I don't. I just put it on in the background occasionally to help me relax" She said. "What's your favorite type of music?" She asked.

"I don't have one" Said L honestly, scratching his head. "I could probably name most famous musicians, but I never formed an opinion about any particular type of music" He explained.

Misa looked incredulous. "WHAT?! So you don't listen to music?!" She yelled. L shook his head. "We MUST fix that" She said as she sat down at the table. L sat across from her in his usual position. The two ate dinner while chatting about music and movies, which Misa had a blast doing because she, for once, had the upper hand in the conversation. L held his own just fine, but Misa was a walking plethora of media knowledge, movies and pop culture.

"Try me, ask me ANYTHING about ANY movie!" She said laughing as L asked her a question.

"Alright. In the movie 3.14 Years Later: A New World, what were Captain Sen's first words to Queen Landa?" He asked with an amused look on his face.

"That's easy!" She said teasingly before she said in a mock seductive voice "Maybe you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness." She winked as she delivered the correct line, making L smile and blush slightly.

"That was too easy! You'll have to come up with something harder than that!" She remarked playfully. Immediately L created a mental list of the most obscure movie references he could think of in hopes of throwing her off. '_Maybe I should ask her calculus questions instead...that will most certainly put her at a disadvantage...'_ He considered with a hint of mischief.

Their little game went until it was time for dessert and the moment L had been waiting for. Misa brought out a delicious strawberry and marmalade-covered cheesecake that was to die for. L was almost fidgety with anticipation. Misa barely had any, but L had a second piece, and then a third, all the while raving about how good it was.

"Misa, do you recall the night that I came here to ask you to join the investigation?" He asked her, unexpectedly. Misa tensed a little. Of course she remembered that night. It was the night that she had drunkenly tried to make out with him.

"...yeah" She muttered hesitantly.

"You also recall that I had asked you if you loved Light, to which you gave the affirmative, correct?"

"...yeah. I remember that" She answered, unsure of where he was going with this.

"Well, I never asked you _why _you loved Light. I'm curious to know" He said. For some reason, that question fell on her like a bucket of cold water.

"Why...do I love Light?" She repeated slowly, trying to buy some time to think of an answer. '_I love Light because...I love Light because...'_ She thought but nothing was coming to her. _I...I don't know...I don't know why...' _She secretly admitted to herself.

"I have often wondered where such devotion for Light came from because as I recall, the day I met you, Light introduced you as just a friend. It appeared that you two were not dating yet, and had only met recently. Yet, that very same day, you were brought in for questioning and you showed such devotion to Light that you were even willing to sacrifice your life for him. I would like to hear what it is about him that compelled you to do such a thing" He said, carefully studying her expression.

Misa was speechless, surprised at her own difficulty in answering such a simple question. She was trying to keep her composure, but inside she was in complete turmoil. She knew he spoke the truth but she did not have an answer to his question. At some point she had been sure of her feelings toward Light, but now it was as though there were some gap in her memory, preventing her from recalling why she felt so strongly about him in the first place. It felt as though what happened in the days leading up to her incarceration had been just a dream, far removed from the reality that faced her now.

"Well...Ryuzaki...love is...unexplainable! I can't tell you _why_ I love Light, because I just...do. It's that simple!" She said laughing nervously. She knew it probably did not sound convincing, but it was better than saying nothing. L stayed quiet for a moment, weighing her answer. Misa eyed him nervously, hoping that he would just leave it at that and move on to a different topic. Of course, he didn't, and what he asked next caught her completely off-guard.

"How would you feel if I asked you to go out with me instead?" He asked her as if it were just an ordinary question. At his words Misa felt a tingly feeling of excitement course through her body. '_Misa, compose yourself dammit' _She thought, containing the unwelcome feeling.

"Um...WHAT?!"

"If given the chance, would you end your relationship with Light to start a new one with me?" He asked her. Misa stared at him open-jawed and wide-eyed.

"Are you crazy?! I could never do that to Light! That's more terrible than cheating on him, which by the way, I know that what's happened between us was kind of like me cheating on Light but I am taking responsibility for my actions and apologizing to him!" She said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"That's a shame... I actually think it should be him who apologizes." Said L, hovering his spoon over the remainder of his cheesecake.

"And why is that, huh? For being so busy all the time?" She asked, getting aggravated. "Ah! I just thought of a reason why I love Light. I love him because he's perfect! He's smart, handsome, hard-working, and noble. There you have it" She said triumphantly.

"Yes, let's not forget that he's also a pathological liar and a cheater" Said L, taking a bite out of his cheesecake. Misa gaped at him and the way he just threw that accusation out there as though it were no big deal. This dinner was going downhill fast.

"What are you saying, Ryuzaki?" She asked, dead serious now.

"Her name is Kiyomi Takada, I am 99% sure he's with her right as we speak." He told her calmly.

Misa was furious now, though a part of her deep down knew it was probably true. There had been numerous times in the past when Light had brought up the possibility of dating other women so as to not make it seem that he's too involved with the alleged Second Kira. Misa flatly rejected his proposition, and Light had called her "unreasonable" for it. Then one night Light had showed up with a love mark on his neck. She had confronted him about it, but he denied the origins of the mark. She cried about it for hours until finally he threatened to leave her if she continued to press the issue, so she stopped.

"You're a liar Ryuzaki. Light's not here because he's busy!" She said, getting up from her chair

"Oh he's busy, alright...with another woman." He finished, cutting her off. Then, she slapped him.

It was a clean slap that made L's face turn slightly. He touched his stinging cheek and looked at her, surprised. Misa met his gaze and, for the first time, she saw a hint of hurt in his eyes.

"No matter what happens between us, you will always come second to Light. Do you understand that?" She said, regretting the words right as they had escaped her lips. There was a long silence as the two stared at each other.

"I don't believe that, and I don't think you do either." He said boldly, dropping his hand from his reddened cheek. Misa looked at him, surprised again by his boldness.

"Do you want me to leave?" He asked her.

"Yes..." She answered feebly, not really meaning it. Without saying any more about it, L got up from his chair, thanked her for the dinner, and walked out of her apartment.

She felt a certain desperation when she saw him go. She didn't think he would really leave, not after the hell he'd just raised. '_He's really walking out and leaving me here with all these questions?!' _She thought as she stood, frozen in place.

L waited for the elevator on the elevator lobby down the hall from Misa's apartment. He stood with his hands in his pockets looking melancholy. He wished he could have pressed the conversation further but he had said everything she needed to hear. He hoped that their conversation made her reconsider her feelings toward Light and maybe...just maybe made her think about the possibility of dating him instead. _'I could have been clearer in my approach but I think she understood the message' _He thought as he looked pensively at the floor. His thoughts were interrupted by the elevator's arrival. Before he could board it, however, he heard her voice calling out to him.

"Hey! Wait! Don't go yet!" She said as she marched toward him. L turned to her, and waited.

Misa reached him and without any warning, she kissed him on the lips. L looked perplexed.

"I don't want you to leave" She said sheepishly. "I'm sorry!" She said, hugging him.

"But, you said-" L started saying, only to be stopped by Misa's lips as she kissed him.

"I know what I said, L. If we're going to do this, then you should learn that sometimes, when I say "no," I really mean "yes," and this time, I meant "yes. Stay." She said, closing the gap between them and kissing him fully on the lips once more.

This time L received her kiss and returned it eagerly. Misa slowly pushed L against the wall by the elevator while planting a trail of kisses on his neck. L's heart was beating at a hundred miles and hour as he ran his hands across her back and recaptured her mouth with his. With shy caresses, they explored each others' bodies over their clothes, filling the hallway with the sound of kisses, heavy breaths, and errant gasps. Misa ran her hands down L's lean chest, and relished how his breathing quickened the further down she went. She stopped at the waistband of his jeans and lightly ran her fingers over it, feeling L's unmistakable arousal pressing against her. He stopped then, diverted his eyes from her, and shifted as if trying to hide the unmistakable bulge in his pants. In response, she mischeviously moved her hips against it, making L tense.

"Misa..." He said against her lips.

"...yes?" She asked innocently, suckling on his lips. He didn't say anything, but he swallowed nervously as his hands slowly roamed further down to feel her bottom, testing the waters. She in turn let her hand finally cross the line of his waistband and brush over the erection tenting his pants. L's breath caught in his throat when she did that, and then fully cupped his arousal, caressing it over the fabric of his jeans. That alone shattered L's reserve, and before she knew it, he'd flipped their positions so that Misa was now pinned against the wall. He grabbed her bottom firmly, surprising her, and she raised her legs to wrap around his waist with her back supported against the wall. L bucked his hips into her own and she returned the motion, liking the way his arousal felt against the inside of her thighs.

"Let's go...inside" She said breathlessly as she nibbled lightly on his ear.

L pressed his forehead against her shoulder, as if giving it some thought, until finally she felt him nod briskly. Maybe they were going fast, but at the moment, L only had one thing on his mind. He took Misa off the wall and together they tumbled into her apartment while making out furiously. Misa pushed him to sit onto the couch and then climbed onto his lap, straddling him. Her already short dress rode all the way up to reveal black panties. L stared at the exposed lingerie and ran his hands up her thighs, stopping right at the fabric of the soft material. He could practically feel the moist heat radiating off her, enticing him more. Misa saw the want in his dark eyes, and discarded the dress, leaving her in nothing but her lingerie.

L stiffened even more and he quickly pressed his mouth against the newly revealed skin of her breasts, licking and nibbling on them. His fingers grazed the area in small circles, right over where he knew her nipples would be. Misa exhaled loudly at his firm touch through the fabric of her bra, as he stimulated the buds on her breasts with slow caresses.

She was quickly unraveling for him. He trailed his hands down to her panties, still kissing and nibbling on her breasts, and once he reached the elastic waistband, he slipped his hand inside and ran his fingers lightly over a very sensitive mound of flesh. Misa moaned loudly and L continued to rub the spot, lost in the sounds she made as she worked her hips against his caressing hand. He felt the extreme heat from her core and he moved his hand further down to her very slick opening. When he inserted his fingers, Misa shut her eyes tightly. There wasn't much more she could take at this rate.

"L...I _want _you..._now." _She hissed with urgency. She tugged at his shirt and he quickly disposed of it, along with his pants and boxers as they made out on the way to the bedroom. They fell back on the bed clumsily. She was breathless as she looked at him, now fully exposed to her for the first time. He climbed over her and she wrapped her legs around him, feeling his stiff member dangerously close to her wet opening.

He took off her bra and drank in the sight of her fully exposed chest. He slowly removed her panties, sliding them off her and then kissing his way back up her legs, his face lingering over her sex, exploring the area with his tongue. He pressed kisses on the sensitive bundle of nerves above it and Misa gripped the sheets of her bed, resisting the urge to buck her hips. She grabbed a fistful of his black hair as L swirled his tongue over her most sensitive spot before he slowly, made his way back up, kissing tenderly over her stomach, and in between her supple breasts, where again, he lingered, licking circles over them. Misa arched her back in response, aching to feel him inside her at last.

"L...please" She said breathlessly and delirious from pleasure.

The way she whispered his name sent sensual shivers through him and he wanted to hear her say it again and again. Breathless and wild with lust, L finished kissing his way back up her neck, positioning himself between her legs. She could feel the tip of his hardened length teasing her wet folds. Upon feeling her hot opening on his member, L groaned against her neck. Finally he caught her lips in a passionate kiss, wrapped his arms around her and pushed himself inside her with a loud groan as he felt her slick, hot walls tightening around his length. Misa gave a cry of relief and pleasure at their union.

"Yes..." She said deliriously, as L slowly pumped into her. They kissed passionately, caressing, embracing, licking, touching. Their moans echoed throughout the room. Misa felt that she was in heaven with this man working himself between her legs. Likewise, L felt like this was his place, entangled in her arms, lost forever inside her. She would be his undoing. Kira or no Kira, he was a lost cause and he knew it then and there that she had trapped him. And he liked it. He felt Misa gripping him tightly, her free hand entangling itself in his hair. Her sounds of pleasure grew louder and more feral as he felt her walls tightening even more around him, sending him closer to his own end. His pace quickened and his thrusts intensified with each passing moment. Their breathing was getting rugged. Misa's legs were getting weak as she felt the tense ball of pleasure quickly building up inside her, threatening to release. Then finally she was there. She threw her head back and cried out as wave, after wave of pent up pleasure suddenly washed over her, sweeping her from the inside out. L felt her coming and quickened his pace, feeling the force of his own orgasm starting to hit him. She firmly wrapped her legs around him and hugged him to her as she felt him tense. He gripped Misa tightly under him and buried his face against her neck, stifling a loud moan as he came inside of her.

They remained joined for a few moments. L was panting, his forehead pressed against her shoulder. Misa could feel her walls still throbbing pleasurably around his shaft, her inner thighs coated in her own slickness. She did not make a move, letting herself enjoy the closeness while it lasted.

A minute later, L recovered and moved out of Misa. Both were now covered in their intermixed release, but neither minded. He rolled over next to her and collapsed there, his breathing returning to normal. He stared up at the ceiling taking in what had just happened between them. Misa looked at him and adjusted herself so that she was snuggled right against his side and her head rested on his chest. She threw her arm over his torso and hugged him to her. L put his arm around her and lightly caressed her bare shoulder as they both lazily dozed off.

-_Very early t__he following morning-_

Misa woke several hours later to find the raven-haired man next to her, lightly toying with a strand of her blonde hair. They were still in the same position that they had fallen asleep in. She looked up at him and saw he looked lost in thought.

"Do you ever sleep? It's like 6 am" She informed him groggily.

"I slept quite a lot, much more than I usually do. I just woke up five minutes ago" He told her. She looked up at him again and noticed something very different about him.

"L...your eyes. You don't have dark circles under them any more!" She said, astounded.

"I told you, I slept." He said, giving her a small smile. She couldn't tear her eyes off of him. She thought he was handsome before, but with proper sleep, the man's looks could rival Light's. Misa could not resist the urge to lean over and kiss him. L received the kiss contently, thinking that he hadn't been this happy in a long time. Misa rested her head on his chest again. Judging by the slow rythm of her breathing, he was certain she would fall asleep again. However, she surprised him when she suddenly asked him something.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you...was that your first time? I'm only asking out of curiosity" She said, shyly. L gazed down at her, not betraying a hint of emotion.

"No. That was not my first time" He told her.

"Oh. I could have guessed it. You were pretty good last night. Amazing, actually" She said blushing furiously at the memory. "So who was your first?" She asked him.

That was a topic that L never discussed with anyone, for good reasons. The only other person in the world who knew about his love affair was Watari. However, he was debating discussing it with Misa. He figured it was ok to do so because there was nothing in that story that could compromise his identity.

"Her name was Naomi Misora" He said finally.

"Naomi Misora...who is she?" Asked Misa, intrigued by this woman who had managed to capture L's heart at some point.

"She was one of the sharpest, most capable, and promising detectives I have ever had the pleasure of working with" He told her. Misa knew it was petty of her, but the way L described this woman made her feel a tad jealous.

"It sounds like you really cared about her. So you met through work? What happened between you two?" She asked, hoping he would tell her.

"I met Naomi three years ago, while working on an important case in America. She was an FBI agent that was assigned to work under me. As to what happened between us, we were together for a year, most of which I spent half-way across the globe from her, heading investigations, while she was permanently stationed in America and could not come with me. She wanted to settle down some place permanent and start a family. I could not give her that, so I ended things between us" He said, looking toward the ceiling.

"I see...that's sad. So what happened to her?" Asked Misa, wondering where this Naomi Misora was now, and hoping that wherever that was, she would stay there, away from L.

"A year after I ended things with her, she became engaged to another FBI agent. His name was Ray Penber, and it just so happened that he was one of the FBI agents that was killed by Kira early on in the investigation." He said seriously. "Shortly after his death, I received notice that Naomi had come to Japan with her fiancee, but that she had gone missing. Some believe she may have ended her life..." He finished with a hint of melancholy in his voice.

Misa gasped, genuinely surprised by the news, and mortified by her previous thoughts about Namoi possibly coming back to steal L.

"...do you really think she...?"

"No. The Naomi I knew was headstrong and she would most likely try to find Kira and avenge her fiancee's death. I am more inclined to believe that Kira got to her first" he said, his voice betraying a hint of anger.

"That's awful...I believed in Kira only because he stood up for the innocents and punished only evil-doers..." She said shamefully.

"Kira isn't the Messiah that he pretends to be, Misa. Mark my words, I _will _catch him." He said, resolutely. '_Keep that in mind for when it's time choose sides...' _

Misa put her head back down on his chest and hugged him to her again but before she could get comfortable, he shifted from her. She looked up at him to see what he was doing.

"There's something I have to do before everyone on taskforce arrives. I'm sure I don't need to explain that it will be very shocking for them to look at the cameras and see us lying in bed together, in the nude" He said getting up from the bed and walking to the living room, retrieving his discarded articles of clothing.

"Oh right! But L what about the last night?! Damn, we're on cameras!" Misa said panicking at her realization. '_I completely forgot about those! Light's gonna kill me if he sees what I did with L!' _She thought.

"That's why I'm going to go downstairs and edit the videos," he told her matter-of-factly "No need to worry about Light seeing what happened, although...I might be tempted to keep a copy of the unedited video for myself..." He said, lightly considering it.

"L!" Said Misa, blushing as she threw a pillow in his direction.

"It was a joke, I'm not actually going to do it!" He said as he threw his hands up defensively, an amused smile on his face.

Once he was fully clothed, L headed for the door. Misa moved on the bed, noticing that she felt a mild ache between her legs, like when a muscle is used for the first time. She ignored it, wrapped herself in a blanket and came up behind him just as he was leaving.

"Will you please come back for a little while longer?" She asked, looking him in the eyes. How could he say no to that?

He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Hmm, that will require me looping the video of your bedroom for a couple more hours but, it can be done. I'll see you back here in half an hour," he told her, kissing her briefly on the lips.

"Alright, I'll wait for you!" She chirped, and with that, he was gone. Misa went back to her bedroom, grinning to herself, and threw herself on her bed, relishing his scent still fresh upon it. That was definitely a night to remember. '_Ah...I should change this sheet' _She thought, looking at the spot of blood on it, a testament to her lost virginity.

Like he'd promised, he was back within half an hour. He entered the room and noticed that she had thrown on some pajama pants and a tank top. '_Probably better that she's clothed for when the video starts giving live feeds again'_ he thought. She noticed him standing there and she sat up to greet him. He went over to her on the bed and she welcomed him back with open arms. She cuddled against him while L put his arm around her, and once more, they dozed off happily together.


	9. Wayward

**Writer's note:** _Hi, thank you so much to my reviewers! I love reviews haha. I literally want to write more every time I see a review. I'm happy you all dig this story so far. It's pretty cool writing it. I love it cause I get to be the reader AND the author simultaneously. I got to this chapter and I was like "damn, the next chapter needs to come out already" and so I obliged to my own demand hahaha. I'm a nutcase, I know. Don't judge. Read and Review! :D _

_..._

It was 10 am and a certain raven-haired detective was nowhere to be found. The taskforce members sat wearily around the main investigation room, trying to go about their business. As hard as they tried, their leader's absence could not be ignored, and every few minutes they would stop working to theorize about L's whereabouts.

"Maybe he's finally had enough and burnt out. With the lifestyle he carries I wouldn't be surprised if he's collapsed somewhere. Sometimes I wonder if he's even human." Said Aizawa while organizing papers on his desk.

"We'll be in big trouble without Ryuzaki! Do you guys think that maybe Kira did something to him?" Asked Matsuda, worried.

"Don't even think about it, Matsuda. If L goes down, so will we. Besides, if something were to happen to him, I'm sure Watari would have informed us by now" Said Chief Yagami.

"Yeah, I guess so. I just find it weird that he's not here. What's your theory on this Light?" Asked Matsuda.

"Beats me. I'm just as surprised as you are" answered Light while studying a video on his computer. He was looking through all the surveillance cameras in the building, looking for any signs of the detective. He came upon the camera in Misa's room and saw that she was still asleep. _'Typical Misa, sleeping in on a weekday' _He thought, his eyes lingering on the image of her sleeping peacefully a bit longer than normal. After a few seconds, he dismissed the video and moved on to the next one.

Suddenly, the door to the main investigation room opened, and in walked the man of the hour, holding a tub of ice cream.

"Ryuzaki!" Yelled everyone in unison.

"Good morning" Said the detective nonchalantly. He continued to walk towards his desk as though nothing were wrong.

"What a relief! I thought Kira killed you!" Said Matsuda to L as he walked by.

"No, not yet at least. I am very much alive as you can see" He answered, sitting down at his desk in his usual crouch.

"Ryuzaki, where were you? We were all looking for you." Asked Light as L sat in the chair next to him.

"It's nice of you all to worry about my safety" Said L, looking at the taskforce members. He then turned to Light. "And if you must know where I was, I was in my room, sleeping" He finished.

"Well, it's nice of you to finally show up." Said Light, with a hint of sarcasm. He looked as irate as ever.

"Had a bad night, Light? You seem a bit tired" Said L, noticing Light's sour expression.

"Not really. It was a night like any other" He said, lying. Last night he went to see Takada. He had screwed her better than he'd screwed anyone in his life before but in his moment of climax, it was not Takada's name that he had called out. It was Misa's. It had been a stupid, meaningless slip of the tongue but Takada took it rather badly. They fought and then she threw all his clothes out the balcony, forcing him to make an embarrassing phone call to room service to retrieve them. It was a terrible night, and the memory of it alone was enough to give him a headache.

"How about yourself? Did you have a good night? You seem...refreshed" Said Light, noticing that L no longer had dark circles under his eyes.

"I had a very good night" He answered, secretly relishing the fact that he had sex with Misa.

"I thought I noticed something different about you when you walked in! Whatever it is you're doing, you should keep doing it Ryuzaki. You look so much more relaxed than usual" Said Matsuda, giving him a thumbs up.

"Keep doing what I did last night? I most certainly will" said L with a look of amusement on his face.

Light looked away from L and tried to focus on his computer. L's presence was starting to annoy him more and more every day. Criminals needed to be punished and he couldn't do it with L breathing down his neck. Not only that, but Light was not very pleased with Higuchi's executions. He was a mediocre Kira who mostly focused on killing other corporate figureheads for his own personal gains. He was a greedy corporate weasel and in due time, Higuchi would get his. However, for now he was a pawn in Light's plan, which was well under way. Soon, both him and Misa would be completely cleared and he'll be free to do as he pleased. '_L, you wanted Kira, I'll give you Kira...once Higuchi gets caught and he confesses to being the real Kira, I'll be free of reasonable suspicion' _He thought, smiling smugly.

Next to Light, L was immersed in his work. At plain sight, the detective appeared to be daydreaming. He was gently biting on his thumb as he sat there, deep in concentration. '_There is something strange about all this. I am almost positive that this is not the real Kira. It can't be. His style doesn't match up.__..'_ He thought. He glanced at Light out of the corner of his eye and caught him smirking. '_t__his__ is not good' _He thought.

-_Meanwhile, upstairs-_

Misa was just waking up. She was smiling as she stretched her limbs on the bed. There was no denying that she had a great night. L had turned out to be a very capable and suitable lover. '_And to think that I once thought him dead from the waist down. I was so wrong' _She thought, chuckling to herself. She fell back on her bed groaning at the lack of his presence next to her. It was scary how much she missed his body already. She finally accepted L's absence from her bed and went to shower.

'_Now, the million dollar question...what do I do with Light? How should I break up with him? I don't even know if I'm actually his girlfriend. He's never introduced me as such' _She thought, frowning. '_Even so__, I hope he takes it well when I tell him...' _She thought as she hopped in the shower and let the warm water run over her. She wondered if L would return to see her that night. She felt her body respond with a pleasurable shiver at the prospect of repeating the previous night's activities. She had to turn the water to cold in order to get her mind out of the gutter.

After her shower, Misa had time to kill before her second interview with Yotsuba. She decided to write down the events of the previous night in her journal. However, ,once again, Misa did not find said journal in the spot where she thought she had left it. '_Ok, now I KNOW for a fact I left it by my bedside last time. Ugh what is wrong with me and losing my diary lately?!' _She thought furiously as she searched all her usual spots. This time, she found it stashed under some of her magazines. She sighed, relieved, and then sat down to write enthusiastically.

...

Some time later, in the main investigation room, everyone sat around discussing what the next step of the plan against Yotsuba would be.

"...I definitely overheard them talking about Kira and killing someone" Said Matsuda.

"If they're using these meetings to coordinate executions, then we must monitor these meetings, take note of everything they say, what they do, and the people they choose to kill. I will assign Weddy to install cameras in that conference room tonight." Said L.

Everyone was in agreement. The door suddenly opened, and Misa walked in. L looked at her briefly, before turning his chair around and continuing to work. Misa greeted everyone cheerfully and then took her usual seat next to L.

"Hey L-I mean Ryuzaki!" She said, correcting herself. '_oops, I should still call him Ryuzaki in front of everyone' _ Her slip-up did not go unnoticed by Light, who narrowed his eyes at L.

"Hey" Said L, sounding bored. He would have liked to give her more of his attention but he could already feel Light's suspicious glare on him.

"What are you working on?" She asked.

"The usual."

"Oh Okay..." She replied, noticing that he was being distant. "...So, I'm going back to Yotsuba again today!"

"Yes. You are" He said monotone, not looking at her.

"I'm not as nervous as I was the first time around so I'll be sure to do a good job!" She said, trying really hard to make conversation with him.

"Let's hope so" He said dryly, without taking his eyes off his computer screen. He knew he was being dry with her, but that's the way it had to be for now.

Misa's face fell as she got the message that he did not wish to speak to her. His rejection stung her, and she briskly turned her chair away from L and huffed angrily.

L looked at her out of the corner of his eye. He noticed her crossed arms, pouted lips, and scowling face.

'_...__and now she's angry. Just wonderful...' _He thought sarcastically.

She didn't want to make a scene in front of taskforce, especially Light, but Misa was fuming on the inside.

'_Why is he being so...COLD and UNINTERESTED in me?! Is he really THAT upset because I called him L in front of everyone?! It was an ACCIDENT.' _She thought, angrily. She was even starting to get red in the face. It was then that she noticed that Light was studying them closely, and decided to leave altogether.

"Whatever, I'm ready to go Matsu!" She said, snapping at Matsuda. He jumped up from his desk nervously and said he was ready.

'_Man, Misa sure got into a foul mood all of a sudden. It must be her cycle or something' _He thought to himself as Misa marched past him.

"Wait, Misa, don't forget your hidden mic" He told her as he went after her.

"I KNOW Matsu! I was going to put it on in the car!" She said, irritated. A scared Matsuda followed her out the door, waving goodbye to everyone.

As soon as they left, all of the remaining taskforce members sighed with relief.

"What happened to her? She seemed so happy when she came in here!" Said Mogi, confused.

"I don't know, women are like that. She's either mad at a guy, or she's on her cycle, or both..." Said Aizawa wisely, causing the rest of taskforce members to mumble in agreement.

L shrunk in his chair. He didn't want to be part of this conversation anymore.

-_Some time later, at Yotsuba-__  
_

Misa was sitting in a medium-sized conference room facing all eight members of the Yotsuba Group. Matsuda was thankful that he had been asked to remain outside. He wasn't very good at these things.

"You're doing very well, Misa. On behalf of Yotsuba Group, I would like to compliment you on your...success as an actress and model" Said one of the Yotsuba Group members, leering at her.

'_Kyosuke Higuchi is his name, I remember...' _She thought. She had noticed the way a few of the Yotsuba members openly eyed her like a piece of meat. However, out of all of those men, Higuchi was the worst. He was also the most disgusting, and the one she liked the least.

"Thank you very much, I appreciate Yotsuba's support" Said Misa, smiling politely.

"But before we can continue with the interview process, there are a few, more personal matters that we need to address first" He continued. Misa was a little worried about what would come next. _'Eh, I don't like the sound of that' _She thought nervously.

"We did a background check on you and found that your parents were killed by a burglar, and that burglar was later killed by Kira. Is this correct?" He asked.

"...Yes, that's true" She said hesitantly.

"Well, in an interview for a magazine you mentioned how you thought the burglar got what he deserved. Does this mean that you are a Kira sympathizer? If you are, we need to know because that will reflect on Yotsuba" He said with a tricky smile on his face.

_'What is this? If Matsu's right, one of them is definitely Kira so I guess they're Kira sympathizers...but maybe not publicly. Damn, what do I say? Well, maybe if I tell them I like Kira, they'll be more likely to let me into their circle...' _She thought.

"It's true, I did say that. I am thankful to Kira for ending that vile man's life not only because it gave me closure for my parents' deaths but because it prevented him from causing any more harm to others in the future. That's how I feel about it, however, publicly I try to maintain a neutral stance. I want to appeal to everyone." She said calmly.

They seemed pleased with her answer and Misa gave a small sigh of relief. After another round of questions, the interview was finally over. All the board members said their goodbyes, except for one. As Misa was about to exit the room and be reunited with Matsuda, she felt a cold, clammy hand grasp her arm firmly. She looked to see who it was. It was Higuchi.

"Misa, that was a very good answer to the Kira question. I find you to be a very strong and intriguing woman." He said, getting uncomfortably close to her.

"Thanks Mr. Higuchi. I only spoke the truth" She said, trying to step away from him.

"What do you say to going on a dinner with me before your final interview at the end of next week? We can discuss your bright future at Yotsuba then" He said bringing his face even closer to hers. Misa could feel his hot breath on her cheek from how close he was. She really wanted to say no and run, but it seemed like her chances of being let into Yotsuba may significantly increase if she went out with Higuchi.

"Thank you for the offer...I'll think about it and give you an answer early next week, alright?" She said, feigning a smile. She gently tugged her arm out of his hand and said that she had another engagement she needed to tend to. He said his goodbyes, and they parted ways.

On the car ride back, Misa received 3 more text messaged from Yotsuba group members asking for dates as well. She was anxious about it, but then she thought of a plan.

"Hey Matsu, can I ask you something?" She said.

"Sure Misa-Misa, what is it?" He responded.

"_Hypothetically_ speaking, what do you think taskforce would say if I were to go out on dates with some of the Yotsuba Group members to try and figure out which one of them was Kira?" She asked carefully.

"No Misa! It's out of the question! Neither Light nor L will ever allow that. It's too risky" He said shaking his head. There was a long pause. "You're doing it anyway aren't you?!" He asked.

"Shut up Matsu! If you say A WORD about this to L or Light, or ANYONE at taskforce, I'll...I'll casually reveal your real name to Yotsuba!" She said.

"You wouldn't!" Said and alarmed Matsuda.

"Oh yeah I would! It's for the betterment of the investigation! I'm doing it and you're going to help me whether you like it or not, ok?" She said, glaring at him.

Matsuda shook his head.

"Matsu! Pleeease! I really really really think this will help us a huge deal!" She said, giving him the puppy eyes.

Matsuda gave a defeated sigh.

"...Alright. I'll keep quiet...but if anything suspicious happens, I'm telling taskforce!" He said, seriously. "AND, I have to go with you as a guard. I won't make it obvious, but I'll be nearby, ok?" he finished saying.

"YAY! MATSU, YOU'RE THE BEST!" She yelled, and gave him a peck on the cheek. Matsuda blushed. "I promise I'll take care of planning everything. They won't know a thing until I have Kira's identity, and then you and I are going to be heroes! Just you wait!" She said cheerfully. Even Matsuda had to admit that finally being important at taskforce would be pretty nice. He smiled at the thought of L, Light, or Chief Yagami praising him for helping to uncover the identity of one of the most elusive mass murderers in history.

The rest of the car ride, Misa discussed the men that had asked her out and what she knew about them. She replied to each one, accepting the dates. The first was for that same night.

"Remember to say that nothing interesting happened and that the interview went just fine, got that? Said Misa, as they walked into HQ.

"Yeah, I know...and you remember that at the first sign of trouble, I'm telling L." He whispered to her. She merely rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll text you the name of the place when he picks me up" She said.

Matsuda entered the main investigation room alone while Misa went straight upstairs to get ready for her date. She didn't feel like seeing L. She was determined to give _him _the cold shoulder this time. '_We'll see how he likes it when I'm out and he doesn't know where I am. That stupid panda is going to regret ignoring me earlier' _She thought mischeviously.

Misa had a date at a bar uptown with the one called Takahashi Eiichi. He was a full-figured man with long-ish blonde hair, who, based on her observations, was the least respected of the group members. She was certain this man could not be Kira, but she still agreed to see him in case he knew who was the real Kira.

She dressed in high heels with knee-high stockings, and a lacy black dress that was fitted at her bust with lacy material. The dress fit perfectly around her mid section and then flared out at the skirt, which hung a couple of inches above the knees. She applied her signature strawberry red lipstick, and black eyeliner to make her honey-colored eyes stand out. Her hair was in its usual style.

'_Alright, it's almost 8pm. I told him to pick me up at the park's entrance at 8:30 so I'd best be going' _She thought. She went down the elevator shaft and exited the building without checking to see who was in the investigation room. '_To hell with whatever you think, Ryuzaki' _She thought smugly as she walked past and exited the building.

"Where is she going?" Said L out loud, looking at Misa leaving the building. Just then, Matsuda choked on his coffee and was making hacking sounds. The remaining taskforce members looked at him with concern.

'_Oh man, I have a bad feeling about this already. Something's gonna go wrong and I'm gonna get in trouble...' _He thought, groaning inwardly. To make matters worse, a few minutes later, his cell phone vibrated in his pockets with what could only be the text message from Misa saying she was with Takahashi. He confirmed this when he read the text message that said '_We are going to Kuroi Uma Bar. Make sure you blend in.' _Matsuda gave a horrified gasp and everyone in the room looked at him.

'Is something wrong Matsuda?" Asked Chief Yagami.

"Um, not at all. Nothing's wrong! I just have to go somewhere...personal...goodbye!" Said Matsuda, tripping over himself on his way out. '_Kuroi Uma Bar?! Is this guy seriously taking her THERE?! That place is notorious for its rowdiness and crowds of thugs and cheap women. I'm gonna have to change out of these work clothes and into something more fitting' _Thought Matsuda, regretfully. He stopped at a cheap knock-off clothing store, and a half hour later, Matsuda stepped out with a bag in his hands. '_Lets hope I blend in' _He said, putting on some black leather gloves, black shades (at night), a black bandana with skulls on it, and finally, a black leather jacket with chains all over. People that walked by him chuckled at his appearance, much to his dismay.

'_I knew it...I look like a clown' _He thought, mortified. '_Oh well, it'll have to do'_

_-At the Kuroi Uma Bar-_

This place was bad. Kuroi Uma Bar reeked of cigarette smoke, alcohol, and some other foul odor that she couldn't quite identify. Not only that, but it was barely past 10 pm and the place was already crawling with sweaty drunks and prostitutes. What was Takahashi thinking bringing her to a place like this? Then again, he wasn't very bright. Scratch that, he was a complete idiot, even worse than the famous actor, Hideki Ryuga, whose stupidity alone made her never want to kiss him in movies. Ryuga was the biggest dumbass she'd ever met in her life, or so she thought, until she met _this _guy.

The first thing Takahashi did when she got into his car was ask her if he could get to second base with her. She had slapped his hands away and told him it wasn't proper to do that on a first date. Then once they got to the bar, he asked her the same question _again_, as if he'd completely forgotten that she had said no just 15 minutes before! If that weren't enough, the guy was a raging alcoholic. Right from the start, he ordered 5 beers, just for himself. She, on the other hand ordered a virgin drink. She did NOT want to get hammered with this guy around.

"So...would you be down for a three-some? That's not second base" He said chugging his third beer. Misa glared back at him, not bothering to answer that. They had only been in the place for 20 minutes and he was already drunk, and boring her to tears. She tried to talk to him about Kira, but the guy was as dense as a rock. Takahashi suddenly stopped rambling and put his head on the table as if going to sleep.

"Hey...HEY!" Yelled Misa, waking him. "I'll let you get to second base with me by the end of tonight if you tell me about Kira" She said, smiling at him seductively. Takahashi gave her a drunk smile and put his hand on her knee.

"Yeah, baby, that's what I wanted to hear!" He said laughing. "I don't know much about Kira but he's best friends with Yotsuba, you know? Takes care of business" He said laughing and slurring his words.

"Kira is helping Yotsuba? Do you know who he is? I'm a fan of Kira and would LOVE to know who he is!" She said, leaning closer to him.

"Yeah he helps us by killing our competitors...but...but...I haven't a FRIGGIN' clue as to who the guy is!" He said, laughing. "But if you're into that kind of stuff...I can be your Kira tonight if you want" He said giving her a wink that caused her to shiver with disgust. Misa was incredulous. She had endured all of this nonsense with Takahashi for nothing. She was done with this man. She couldn't bare hearing him talk any longer so she got up and went to sit at the bar. There, the bartender passed her a reddish drink that looked like red coca-cola. She looked at him, confused and he gave her a smile.

"This one's on the house. You looked like you weren't having any fun with your date over there." Said the bartender.

"Ugh, you have no idea. Thanks" She said, accepting the drink. It was a sweet drink that Misa recognized as a Cosmopolitan. '_I wonder where Matsu is' _She thought while scanning the crowd. '_He must have taken that blending in thing really seriously, I can't pick him out of this crowd. __I'll ask him to take me home as soon as I find him'_

-_Outside Kuroi Uma Bar-_

Matsuda had not made it into the club yet. He tried to bypass the long line by sneaking past the bouncer, but the bouncer shoved him to the back of the line. The rowdy crowd on the line cheered and yelled at Matsuda as he passed by them.

"Yeah get to the back, pretty boy!" Said one of the rougher dudes on the line.

"Nice outfit..._princess' _Said another burly man with a scar across his face, laughing with his friends.

Matsuda was out of his element here. Most of the people on line were rugged, ill-tempered men and women who'd probably served time in jail. If they knew he was a police officer under cover, all hell could break loose.

"Meh, I'm not cut out for this..." Mumbled Matsuda as he walked with his head down to the back of the line. Words could not express how much he regretted this plan, and it was only about to get worse...

...

Meanwhile, inside, Misa was offered yet another drink by the nice bar tender, only this time, it came from a handsome man in a suit who sat across the room. The man looked to be about 40 or so, toned, with pale skin and slightly long pitch black hair. The man bore an uncanny resemblance to L, only much older. He also looked extremely out of place in the Kuroi Uma and Misa wondered why he was there. She decided to accept the drink, thinking that the man looked respectable enough. He raised his glass to her, and she did the same to him, giving him a smile and mouthing "thank you" to him.

She went back to scanning the crowd for Matsuda. It was already past 11 and the crowd inside the bar seemed to have multiplied. The air was getting thick with smoke and it was starting to get very hot. The music was blasting and everywhere Misa could see "couples" grinding and groping each other on the dance floor. She was starting to feel lightheaded and suffocated by the bar's atmosphere. She felt something cold pressed against her arm and saw that the bartender had passed her yet another red drink. It was from the same man in the suit that resembled L.

"Oh, no, I can't accept another one!" She told the bartender. The bartender gave the man a thumbs down, and he got up from his seat and walked over to Misa's side of the bar. When he reached her, he leaned in close to her ear so she could hear him over the blaring music.

"You're Misa Amane, correct? I'm a fan of yours. Please accept my drink" He said.

"Thank you! I really shouldn't though! I didn't eat anything before and I think I'm getting a little drunk!" She said.

"Please, it would make me a very happy man, and fan, if you accepted it" He said. He wasn't taking no for an answer.

"Fine...but only because I hate disappointing my fans, ok? And that's the last one!" She said. She grabbed the drink and chugged it. She nearly choked on it from how strong it was. It must have been at least twice as strong as the previous two she had.

"Oh my gosh...you're trying to kill me!" She said laughing.

"Never. I would never harm a beautiful woman like yourself he said, caressing her arm. Misa felt a shiver up her spine at his touch. It was mostly because he looked like L and because the drinks were starting to hit her. She laughed and waved his hand off.

"Bartender! Another drink for the beautiful lady over here!" Said the man calling the bartender over. Misa waved her hands to indicate that she didn't want any more.

"No, no, no. Really, I shouldn't have any more!" She said looking anxious.

"Please, just drink this one with me and I promise you I'll leave you alone" He said, making her feel a little guilty. Misa threw her arms up in the air and accepted the drink once more. It was another strong one, and by the end she was seeing double. She tried to excuse herself but as she stepped away from the man, she lost her balance and nearly fell flat on her face. Luckily, the mystery man caught her by the waist before she hit the floor.

"Whoops!" She said laughing loudly. "Wait a minute! Is that you, Ryuzaki?" She said, squinting at the man's face.

He laughed and continued to hold her closer to him by the waist.

"My name's Roger. I probably should have introduced myself earlier" He said, lifting her arms over his shoulder and around his neck so that she was hugging him.

"Roger?! Really?! You look a lot like that stupid panda!" She said, her words starting to slur.

"I'm sorry?" He asked innocently, while pressing his forehead to hers as he held her. He started to sway her hips against his to the beat of the music and Misa, not paying attention to anything anymore, followed his movement.

"I SAID YOU LOOK A LOT LIKE MY PANDA, the one that's waiting for me at my home, where I live!" She said louder so he could hear her.

"Do I now?" He said seductively as he started to kiss her neck and running his hands ever so slowly down to her bottom.

"L?" She said longingly. As the L impostor licked her neck.

"Yes?" Whispered the man huskily into her ear. He turned her around so that her bottom was pressed against his crotch. Misa grind her hips against him with the music, fully believing she was with L now. The man hissed at the contact her body made with his groin.

"You're a wild one, aren't you?" He said while snaking his hand to grasp one of her breasts.

Misa turned around and said "You've seen nothing yet, love. Watch this" She said, and that's when she climbed onto the bar.

-_Outside the Kuroi Uma Bar-_

It was finally Matsuda's turn to get into the bar. Just as he was about to be let in, a commotion broke out inside the bar. A woman in a skimpy outfit and hooker heels came running out to tell the bouncer to shut the doors.

"It's mayhem in here! Apparently there's some famous celebrity inside, making a spectacle of herself. The crowd's going wild!" She told the bouncer.

'_Oh no, that's Misa!' _Thought Matsuda, alarmed. The bouncer announced that no one else could get into the club, causing the people on the line to protest.

"I have to get in there! I'm a police officer! Let me through!" Said Matsuda, trying to sound authoritative.

"Yeah, right. If you're a cop, I'm Miss Daisy. To the back of the line!" He said menacingly to Matsuda. At this, Matsuda tried to push his way through the bouncer, but he ended up being pushed back into the crowd of people behind him. Like a domino effect, the people behind him pushed to get inside the club to see the celebrity. They trampled over each other, and soon the bouncer was throwing punches left and right. The place was a mess. Matsuda ran to the side to avoid being trampled by the crazed mob.

"No no no no no! This can't be happening!" Yelled Matsuda, panicking. He shook his head disbelievingly as he observed the brawl going on at the door of the bar. There were people yelling inside too, which meant that Misa could very well be in trouble. Matsuda paced back and forth desperately, trying to think of something he could do. Finally he stopped as he came to the realization that he would have to do the one thing he didn't want to do.

"I KNEW this plan was a bad idea! Dammit!" Yelled Matsuda as he took out his cell phone and dialed a number. There was no other option, he had to call L.


	10. Suspicion

**Writer's Note:** _Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the awesome reviews! As per popular demand, here's chapter 10! Woohoo! Good or bad, don't forget to R&R! _

_Also, a VERY good question came up in a review and it was about why Light all of a sudden seems interested in Misa again. The reason for this is that Light can't stand the thought of losing anything to L, not even Misa. As soon as he starts to suspect that he's losing her to him, he becomes interested in getting her back. I should have made this clearer earlier haha._

* * *

...

It was past midnight and a black Bentley was speeding through the streets of Tokyo on its way uptown. Its destination was the most unsavory locale in town, better known as Kuroi Uma Bar. In the back seat of the car sat a very impatient and pissed off L. On the outside, he remained cool and composed, but on the inside, he wanted to wring Matsuda's neck for going along with this charade. However, as much as he wanted to kick Matsuda, he was most angry with himself.

_'How did I not see it before?! Misa's outfit as she went out, the fact that Light was right next to me as she left, meaning that she was going out alone, Matsuda's strange behavior when she left as well as his vague report on the interview with Yotsuba...' _ Thought L, looking down at his knees, frowning. '_It was_ _so__ obvious. But I was careless, so she pulled one on me...' _He thought, angry.

"Watari, can we go any faster?" Asked L sternly.

The older man looked at his protegee through the top mirror. He was worried about Misa but he couldn't help feel happiness because the man who he considered his son was finally allowing himself to care for another. He hadn't seen L this agitated in years, and even though he hid his emotions well, Watari always knew the truth.

"Apologies, but this is as fast as I can go without attracting the attention of road police" Answered Watari. "We will be arriving in a few short minutes though" He said, attempting to ease L's anxiety.

The raven-haired detective sighed impatiently. Normally, minutes were nothing to him and patience was one of his virtues. But tonight was not a normal night, and each passing minute that Misa was in that place, possibly in trouble, was making him lose his composure. He hung his head down so his dark bangs obscured his frown. As he looked down, he thought back on everything that Matsuda had told him.

...-_flashback-..._

It was 10 pm and only L and Light remained at Taskforce Headquarters. L was deep in thought, silently stirring a cup of coffee and sugar cubes while Light was getting ready to leave.

"Ryuzaki, it's getting late so I'm gonna head out." Said Light as he packed his laptop. L barely paid mind to him as he sipped his coffee.

"I wonder where Misa went earlier. I'm surprised she's not back yet" Light continued. L paid attention to him this time.

"Yes, I was just wondering the same thing" He said thoughtfully.

"Well, if she ran off to my place again like last time, I'll be sure to bring her back tomorrow" Said Light, with a smug grin on his face. L felt a pang of jealousy at the thought of Misa running off to be with Light.

"I wouldn't put it past her" Said L, sounding dejected.

The detective sat alone in the investigation room, submerged in his work, trying not to think about Misa. His plan to avoid thinking about the attractive blonde only worked for about an hour and before he knew it, he was staring at the clock again, wondering where she could be.

'_Is she with Light now? I didn't think she would be, especially after what happened between us. I thought she understood that my intent was to date her formally, not to be her little side affair. Or perhaps she's made her choice...' _He thought, biting his thumb anxiously. There was only one way to find out, so he gave her a call. He dialed the number but as soon as it rang, he heard a '_Hi, you've reached Misa Misa! I can't answer my phone right now so please leave a message after the beep!' _L hung up without leaving a message. He was about to give up when his own cell phone rang. He quickly looked at his phone, hoping that it would be Misa. Instead, he saw that it was Matsuda. L sighed and answered the call.

"What is it, Matsuda?" Asked L unenthusiastically.

"L...there's not much time to explain so I'll get to the point." There was a short pause as Matsuda summoned the courage to tell L what was happening.

"Misa came up with this crazy plan to go out with one of the Yotsuba men to try and expose Kira." Alarm bells were already going off in L's head at this revelation. He didn't like where this was going.

"She met up with him and he took her to a bar uptown. I came too but I couldn't get in and now something really bad is going on there and she's still inside and I don't know if she's OK or not!" Said the distressed cop.

L noticed that Matsuda had left out the name of the bar where Misa was, which made him imagine the worst. He hoped that whomever she went out with hadn't taken her to _that _place. Matsuda wouldn't have gone along with it, or so he hoped.

"Where are you and Misa?" He asked carefully.

Matsuda swallowed nervously.

"...at Kuroi Uma Bar..." Said Matsuda finally.

L let out an exasperated sigh, realizing that it was just as he imagined. _  
_

"Matsuda you idiot!"

"L, come quickly! We don't have a lot of-" Yelled Matsuda, but before he could finish, L had already jumped out of his chair and hung up the phone. He was on his way.

..._End flashback..._

Watari rounded one final corner before arriving at the entrance of the infamous Kuroi Uma Bar. There was a crazed mob of people pushing to get inside. The police had arrived but they were doing very little to subjugate the angry crowd.

Matsuda was off to the side attempting to get one of the police officers to let him in.

"My name is Touta Matsuda of the NPA, I need to get inside!" He said to one of the police officers. The officer eyed Matsuda in his "thug" attire skeptically.

"If you're a cop, I'm Miss Daisy" Said the officer, walking away from Matsuda.

"WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP SAYING THAT TO ME?!" Yelled Matsuda, throwing his hands up in frustration. That's when he turned around and saw that L had arrived. He ran over to him.

"Matsuda you look absolutely ridiculous" Said L walking towards the entrance and ignoring the angry mob. Matsuda scratched his head while giving L an apologetic look.

"They're not letting anyone in, I tried everything" Said Matsuda to L. L looked at the bouncers fighting off the crowd at the entrance. He had to get in there any way necessary, and he had just the thing. L walked back to his car and brought something with him that Matsuda couldn't quite make out. He watched and followed as L walked calmly toward the entrance to the bar.

The bouncer immediately spotted L and barred him from entering.

"You're not getting in pal!"Said one of the bouncers. L took out the item from his pockets and Matsuda saw that it was a thick roll of cash, enough to pay someone's rent for months. L looked at the bouncer defiantly and dropped the cash into the man's hands. The bouncer's jaw dropped and he quickly put the cash into his back pocket before anyone else could see it.

"Of course, we can always make exceptions. Come with me" Said the bouncer, giving L a pat on the back. L said nothing as they moved forward.

"Hey what about me?! Can't I come in too?!" Said Matsuda to L as he walked in.

"Just go home Matsuda, I'll take care of this" Said L as he disappeared into the bar.

Walking into the Kuroi Uma Bar felt like walking into a hazy oven that smelled of pure alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, and sex. The atmosphere was clouded with smoke and he noticed that everyone was crowded around the main bar, screaming profanities and fighting. It didn't take long for him to see why. He had at last found Misa and at the sight of her L's jaw dropped. She was standing atop the bar, grinding her hips to the beat of the music, hiking her already short skirt up to flash a pair of lacy panties, all the while running her hands all over her body. There was no doubt that she was drunk. The men around the bar were yelling disgusting things at her and throwing bills in her direction as she danced seductively on the bar. They were all buying her drinks, betting and fighting on who would get to bed her. L just knew that getting her out of there was going to be a complete shit show.

He needed to cause a diversion. L looked around the hazy place and picked out several good candidates, one being a large man that was clearly inebriated with a rather unsavory looking woman on his arm. The man was leaning on the wall as he laughed senselessly with the woman, perhaps unable to hold himself up right. Behind the man, a couple of sweaty guys chanted loudly as they downed some beers. They were perfect. L wove his way through the crowd and to the drunk man. He punched him as hard as he could in the back. The man growled and turned around to find the sweaty guys laughing.

L popped up from behind him and said in an obnoxious tone "Dude, he totally just made out with your girlfriend! What a jerk. You should, like, start a bar fight as a distraction or something!"

The man grabbed one of the sweaty guys and started beating the crap out of him, causing the other to jump on him and several pockets of people to look away from the bar and at the fight. L admired the terrible attention span of these people.

He snapped out of it and began to make his way to the bar.

"Excuse me, coming through, watch it, don't mind me" Said L as he stepped on, over, and around the many bodies that were standing between him and Misa. Luckily most of the patrons were too drunk and slow to swing at him. At this point, L didn't care who he had to step over, or who got offended. He was taking Misa home and that was that.

Misa felt guiddy and light-headed. This place was suffocating her but she wanted to dance for L and show him what a good time she was. She undulated her body to the beat of the music and slowly shimmied her body all the way down as low as she could go before coming back up seductively. While she was down, she thought she heard a familiar voice call her name. It was difficult for her to hear over the shouting and the noise. She was so confused now and wasn't sure where she was, but as long as she was with L, she felt safe.

"Misa, we're going home. Get down" She heard loud clear this time. She stopped dancing and leaned forward on the bar unsteadily. She squinted her eyes to better see through the haze. Finally, at the foot of the bar, she saw him. Her eyes met his deep gray ones, and she felt a surge of happiness at the sight of him. This was the real L, and he looked very mad.

"MY PANDA! EVERYONE, HE'S HERE, THIS IS THE ONE!" She yelled out loud as she jumped off the bar and onto L, who barely caught her by her hips. The crowd booed and threw things in anger. They looked as though they would murder L for stealing their prize. Realizing how hostile things were getting, L took hold of Misa's hand and started to walk toward the entrance. They hadn't made it two feet before he felt Misa being yanked out of his grasp. She screamed in protest and L turned back to see who had taken her. He turned to see a man that looked very much like him, though definitely older.

"Sorry, she's taken" Said the culprit, holding onto Misa as though she were his property.

"You're correct about that" Said L matter-of-fatcly.

"Roger! Get off, I want to go home!" She said, clumsily pushing her captor away.

"Aw, what's the matter baby, we were having so much fun before" Said Roger, with an insulted look on his face.

"It seems you've been mislead, now let my girlfriend go" Said L, in a serious tone.

"Your _girlfriend?_ Fuck you man, I found her first, now get lost" Said Roger as he took a firm hold of Misa and pinned her against the bar. Her body shuddered in disgust, especially since she knew that this was not L. Misa screamed as she felt her assailant run his hand up her skirt. However, as soon as he'd started to do that, all his weight was abruptly thrown off of her. She heard Roger yell as his body hit a nearby table and the people in the bar screamed and cheered. Misa was feeling sick and so she supported herself on the bar. She tried to focus on what was happening and saw that L and his older version now had each other by the necks of their shirts, about to punch each other. She had to do something. She grabbed one of the bar stools and with as much strength and coordination as she could muster, chucked it in the direction of the two men.

She hit one and he fell back into the screaming crowd. She stumbled forward, extremely dizzy and fell into a pair of familiar arms.

"Yes baby, I knew he was bluffing" Said Roger, kissing her forcefully. Misa's eyes opened widely in shock as she realized that she had thrown the bar stool at the wrong man. She screamed. _  
_

"Misa, That really hurt" Said L getting up from where he fell. Roger stopped kissing Misa and lunged for L, who met his adversary half-way with a powerful kick to face. Roger went flying into yet another table and the crowd went wild. L went to retrieve Misa who had fallen back on the bar but as he reached her, Roger threw himself at L, sending both men crashing down onto the floor. L kneed Roger in the stomach and rolled on top, punching him repeatedly. Roger in turn grabbed L by the neck and punched him back.

Misa was desperate. Enough was enough. She forced herself to stand straight, she grabbed a giant bottle of jack from a nearby patron and drunkenly marched toward the two men wrestling on the ground. L was currently pinned down by Roger who was doing his best to choke him. She identified Roger by his clothing and promptly smashed the bottle on his head, causing the man to fall over unconscious.

L quickly pushed the unconscious man off of him and got on his feet shakily, thankful that Misa had hit the right man this time. Right then, as if on cue, the bar doors burst open and in spilled the angry mob that had been outside. It appeared that the bouncers were no longer able to contain them. As if things weren't bad before, they were about to get worse. As a riot broke out anew, L grabbed Misa and led her to the other side of the bar. She could barely walk straight so he ended up carrying her for some ways until he found the emergency exit. Shots were fired and bottles of alcohol started flying everywhere, one smashing into the wall right above L's head. People were running out to the emergency exit to get away from all the commotion, L and Misa included.

"L I didn't mean to call you Ryuzaki earlier today. I mean, I didn't mean to call you L earlier today...in front of everyone" Said Misa sleepily.

"I know, don't worry about that now" He said pushing open the emergency exit.

"Is it true...that I'm your girlfriend? Like you said back there? Not even Light introduced me as his girlfriend" She said smiling weakly.

"We can talk about that later, not now" Said L, looking for Watari. As if on cue, the old man rounded the corner and drove toward the emergency exit where L had Misa in his arms.

"What's that?" She asked L, pointing to a small trail of red liquid running from the corner of his mouth. "You're bleeding..." She said, frowning.

"It's nothing" he said, as he turned his head from her and spat out blood. He opened the back door of the bentley and deposited Misa safely inside before climbing in.

"L, are you and Misa alright? I came to the back as soon as the crowd at the main entrance ran inside. I figured you would not come out that same way" Said Watari.

"Thank you Watari. I'm fine though Misa will wake up to a massive hangover and a lot of regret tomorrow morning" He said hugging her to him. She shifted so that she sat on his lap and kissed him sleepily before passing out. Her small gesture did not go unnoticed by Watari's watchful eyes. It appeared to him that his adopted son and Misa were even closer than he imagined.

"You troublemaker..." Whispered L as he brushed a strand of her hair off her face.

..._in the meantime, back at the Kuroi Uma..._

A mob of people spilled out the back door of the bar. Among them were two very attractive women who were rushing to get as far away from the place as possible.

"Kiyomi, you were right. I don't know what I was _thinking_ suggesting that we come to this place! How AWFUL!" Said the brunette to her friend.

"I told you it was going to be a bad idea, Ami. Although, I wouldn't say the _entire _night was a complete waste" Said Kiyomi with a wicked smile on her face.

After Takada became depressed over her fight with Light, her best friend, Ami, planned a girls' night out. The idea was to go bar hopping, get trashed, and do terrible things that they would not remember in the morning. Takada, always so refined and proper did not agree with the plan at first, but she was so upset over Light that it didn't take much to convince her. That is how they ended up at the Kuroi Uma bar. The place was a dump and within the first 10 minutes of being there they had decided to leave. Then, right as they were getting up to walk out, Kiyomi stopped dead in her tracks as something, or rather _someone _caught her attention.

She saw none other than Misa Amane climb onto the bar, and begin to dance like a complete whore. Takada took out her cell phone immediately and filmed the whole thing.

As if things couldn't get any better, about 15 minutes later, Takada spotted L. She wondered what he was doing there, but he soon answered her question when he walked up to the bar where Misa was dancing. She nearly choked on her drink when she heard him refer to Misa as his girlfriend. Then the fight broke out and the rest was history.

"I can't wait to show this to Light. I'm just dying to see his reaction when he sees that skimpy bitch showing her true colors" She said to Ami as they walked down the street. Ami laughed at her friend's hatred toward the blonde.

'_Oh Light, you're going to be so surprised when you learn that your little Misa Misa has been fooling you all along, and with your enemy nonetheless...' _Thought Kiyomi, pleased.

..._the next morning at Kira Taskforce HQ..._

Misa woke up parched with thirst and with a massive headache. She squinted her eyes, trying to make out her surroundings and saw that she was in her room, alone. She looked at her bedside table and saw that someone had left a glass full of water out for her. She drank it in gulps until it was done. She sat up on the bed and noticed that she had also been changed into pajama pants and a tank top.

'_Oh my gosh, what happened to me last night? I feel like I've been run over by a truck' _Thought Misa, holding her head. She thought about what happened last night, and slowly but surely she pieced everything together. And she was mortified.

'_Oh shit, I have to find L. He probably thinks the worst of me now' _She thought worried as she got up from her bed. She didn't have to go far before she found who she was looking for. When she walked out onto her living room, she found that L was sitting on her couch, typing away on his laptop. She approached him hesitantly.

"You're awake" Said L, giving her a small smile. The dark circles under his eyes were a dead giveaway that he had not slept all night. '_My panda' _She thought fondly.

"You did this?" She said, pointing to her pajamas.

"Oh yes, I had to change you since on our way up here you vomited all over your dress" He said seriously. Misa gave him a look. She was even more ashamed now.

"Wow, I don't remember that part..." She said.

"Would you want to? I could give you all the details if you'd like" He said to her.

"No thanks, I think I'll pass" She said sitting down next to him. She moved to embrace him but before she could get close to him, he put his hands on her shoulder and kept her at arms length.

"What's wrong?" She asked, worried. It was then that she noticed that L had a broken lip, a bruise and a cut on his cheek. He'd gotten hurt because of her carelessness.

"We need to talk" He told her. Misa felt panic spread through her. '_Oh no. No good conversation every starts with those words. Is he going to...end things with me? But we've only just started going out' _She thought. L could see the look of worry on her face, but it was something he had to do.

"Misa, make no mistake that I feel strongly about you." He said, looking into her eyes.

"However..." He continued. '_Here it comes' _She thought trying her hardest not to cry.

"You are mistaken if you think that you can go around bars philandering with other men, even if they look like me. I won't tolerate it." He told her very seriously.

L was jealous. He wasn't breaking up with her after all! Misa felt terrible about what happened at the bar, but she was also relieved that he was giving her another chance.

"Yeah! I promise you that it won't happen again! I want only you, L" She told him firmly.

"Well that's good" He said as he removed his hands from her shoulders, a relieved look on his face. As soon as his arms fell from her shoulders, she tackled him on the couch and threw her arms around him.

"Thank you, L, for everything" She told him, enjoying the warmth of his arms around her. "You didn't sleep at all did you?" She asked, looking up at him.

"I had to make sure you didn't die in your sleep" He told her, nonchalantly.

"Have dinner with me tonight. I want to make it up to you" She told him, biting her lower lip seductively. L felt a desire stir in him.

"I like the sound of that. Sure." He said, already imagining the things he'd like to do to her. At his response, she cheered and laid her head back on his chest. The two remained in that position for a long time, just enjoying the other's warmth and company.

..._In a hotel in the outskirts of town..._

Light sat on a couch with crossed arms and a stoic expression. Facing him was Kiyomi and she was holding her cell phone as though it were extremely precious.

"Well, I'm here. What is it you want, Kiyomi?" Said Light coldly. He still hadn't forgiven her for the humiliation she caused the last time they had met. He had been giving her the cold shoulder ever since to teach her a lesson. She was lucky that he had even showed up here today.

"Light, I know you're angry with me over what I did, but please, try to understand how I felt" She pleaded with a hurt look on her face.

"Is that all you wanted to say to me?" He asked, impatiently. She searched his face for any sign of emotions, but she found none. He was hurting her more than he could imagine, but she needed to set her feelings aside and get to business.

"No, that's not what I came here to tell you. I think there's something you need to see" She said as she passed him her cell phone. Light took it, intrigued.

"Play the video" She told him. He did just that. The video was poor quality so at first it was hard to see what was happening, then the camera came into focus and he could make out the figure of a woman who resembled Misa, dancing on a bar. He wasn't impressed with the video and was about to stop it, when something caught his attention. A few minutes in, he saw a man who resembled L walk up to the bar and get the woman who looked like Misa down. This couldn't be a coincidence. He'd noticed a behavior change in both of them recently, and although L hid his emotions well, Misa wore her heart on her sleeve. This could very well be the proof of what he feared was happening between them.

The rest of the video was too blurry to be of any use but Light had seen enough. He was careful to not let his face betray any of the emotions that he was experiencing. He needed to get some information from Kiyomi before drawing a final conclusion.

"What exactly am I looking at here?" Asked Light, pretending to be disappointed in the video.

"Isn't it obvious?! The woman on the bar is Misa, and the one who came to get her was L. I saw them with my own eyes, Light. When he came to get her, he claimed that she was his girlfriend and then a fight broke out and he ended up leaving with her." She said, desperate for his understanding. This was her one chance to get back on Light's good graces, and it wasn't going over as well as she'd imagined.

Kiyomi's story made perfect sense to Light. She had never lied to him before, and this further proved her loyalty to him, and his suspicions about L and Misa. '_This is bad' _He thought.

"Good work Kiyomi. I believe you." He said, finally rewarding her. She looked at him wide eyed at first and then she smiled at him gratefully.

"Thank you. What's going to happen now? Will you confront them?" She asked, tears of joy forming in her eyes.

"No, that may not be necessary. Tell me, did you receive word from Mikami regarding the tests I asked him to perform?" Asked Light seriously.

"Yes, just this morning I received a call from him saying that 'it works'" She told him, not knowing what that meant.

Light smiled, pleased and relieved to hear the news. Kiyomi was completely confused by his sudden change in demeanor.

"What does that mean?" Asked Kiyomi.

"Higuchi's going to be caught soon. As soon as that happens, L will die. As for Misa, I have something special planned for her." He told her.

Kiyomi was disappointed by the fact that killing Misa was not part of his plan. However, she was curious as to how he was going to eliminate L.

"If you don't mind me asking...how?" She asked.

"I found a way to kill someone with the Death Note without the use of their name. And Higuchi is going to be the one to do it. As for Misa, I think it's time for her to remember where her true loyalties lie." He said, with a malicious grin on his face.


	11. Calm

**Writer's Note: **_Hey everyone. So this is my attempt at working my way through a serious episode of writer's block (don't we all love writer's block? -_-') . I have most of the major plot points thought out for the rest of the story, but making them into one continuous function is getting a little challenging. The end result of this week's fight against procrastination? This thing right here. Enjoy!_

_Also, thank you lots to all my wonderful reviewers. LOVE the comments, keep 'em coming! =]_

* * *

A week passed sine the bar incident and every night since, L and Misa sneaked away to places to spend time together. This night was no exception.

Her dining room table was still covered in leftovers from dinner, which L helped her make. Misa discovered the hard way that he was a _terrible_ cook, prone to burning even the microwaveable stuff. In the end she managed to salvage most of it, but only after poking fun at his terrible culinary skills, which he did not appreciate.

L's favorite part was, not surprisingly, dessert, of which he had seconds...and thirds. With determination and brute force, she finally dragged him away from the cake for an intense session of love making. They were sprawled out on the couch as they had not even made it to the bedroom before going at it. L wrapped his arms around her naked body as Misa laughed heartily. Her laughter resonated through her apartment as she retold the story of her failed date with Takahashi.

"...it was _awful_, that man was the WORST!" She said tearing up from laughing so much.

"Just how bad was he again? I didn't quite understand it the first four times you mentioned it" He teased her.

Whenever Misa brought up her "date" with Takahashi during dinner, she mentioned several times that Takahashi was "the WORST," as if that was the only thing she could say about the man. L could not help but tease her about it, especially after she'd teased him earlier.

"He was the WORST." She repeated, trying to keep a serious face.

"Really? I could have sworn you said he was the best" He taunted.

"No! Shut up! You're just teasing me!" She laughed and playfully smacked his chest.

L gently grabbed her hand and kept it there on his chest, over his heart. Misa relaxed as she felt his heart beat under her palm. She sighed contently and laid her head back down on his chest, lounging on top of him.

Misa had finally been formally contracted as spokesperson for Yotsuba. L was slightly relieved because it meant that from then on, she would only be dealing with the camera and film crew of the Yotsuba marketing division instead of the eight members of the Yotsuba Group. That meant that she would be relatively safe for the time being. Now he had to catch the Yotsuba Kira as quickly as possible. He stared up at the ceiling, listening to the peaceful sound of her breathing.

Misa felt him shift beneath her. He gently lifted her up and she protested with pouted lips.

"I have to go. There's still a lot of work I have to do" He told her.

"Aw!" She grabbed him. "You always have to go save the world. You should take a break and stay with me tonight!" She protested, half-jokingly.

"I already took a break" He said, peeling her off of him. "Besides, if I don't do this, then we'll never get ahead in the case." He told her calmly, putting on his clothes. She understood where he was coming from, but she was still not happy about it.

"Ok..." She said, defeated, falling back onto the couch where he was just laying. "But promise you will come back to me when you're done!" She said giving him her puppy-eyed look.

He gave her a small smile and nodded. Too often he found himself saying yes to Misa's capriciousness, and that was not good.

"YAY! Come back quickly!" She said as he walked out of her apartment with his hands in his pockets. Once he left, Misa went to her bedroom and changed into comfy pajamas. As hard as she tried to sleep however, she couldn't. She'd become spoiled and only slept if L was by her side. "_He's the perfect pillow...' _She thought fondly. She looked at her clock and saw that it was 4:30 am. She waited for L a while longer, trying her best to sleep, to no avail. That's when she decided to take matters into her own hands.

'_Well, if he won't come to me, I'll just have to go to him!' _She said smugly, getting up to go to her closet. She sifted through the items in her closet until she found what she was looking for.

-_In the main investigation room-_

The curved figure of the raven-haired detective could be seen atop his chair. The room was dark and the only illumination came from the many computer screens scattered about the room. On his way down from Misa's apartment he had picked up a pack of gummy bears and was now munching on them. He lined them up one by one as he thought of each individual Kira.

'_It's all becoming clear now' _He thought, looking at each of the four gummy bears on his desk. '_There is a total of four Kiras now. This proves that Kira's killing power can be passed from person to person, but why? Because in doing so each subsequent Kira is a distraction from the first.'_ He thought as he eyed the first gummy bear on the row. '_The first Kira, Light Yagami, passes on his power to the second Kira...no. The second Kira appeared independently of the first, meaning that Kira's power can not only be passed down but that multiple people can have it at the same time. Assuming Misa is the second Kira, I doubt she passed her power down since she's been under strict surveillance. That means that Light Yagami passed his power to the third Kira, and the__ Yotsuba Kira as a distraction.' _He thought, gripping his knees.

'_Yotsuba Kira is turning out to be deceptively easy to catch. At this rate it'll only be a matter of days before I have him in custody' _He thought, knocking down the 4th gummy bear. '_Then after that happens, I will know how Kira kills and that will lead me to the third Kira.' _He knocked down the third gummy bear. '_If I find the third Kira without dying, I will undoubtedly catch the first' _He said, finally knocking down the first gummy on the line. He now looked at the second gummy bear, standing alone in the row of fallen gummy bears. '_But that leaves the question of the second Kira...Misa. What to do with her? I can't-' _But his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of soft footsteps behind him. _  
_

Before he could turn around, he felt a soft pair of arms encircle him and an equally soft pair of breasts press against his back. The contact sent a spark down his back and to his loins.

"How's work going?" She murmured into his ear. She saw the gummy bears on his desk and giggled as she imagined him toying with his food like he often did. It was one of his quirks that she found endearing.

"What are you doing here?" He asked her without turning around.

"I'm here to help you work, silly!" She said, walking around him so he could see her.

She was wearing a tiny satin nightgown with a deep v-neck that revealed her cleavage, and a simple white garter. L gawked at her, noticing that she wasn't wearing a bra underneath. As if his mind hadn't wandered enough, one of the straps of her nightgown had slipped off her shoulder, threatening to reveal her soft breasts to him.

L said nothing, but the way he was staring at her let Misa know that her plan was working just fine.

"Well, I guess I'd better get started on these papers!" She announced, picking up a stack of papers from the desk, bending over ever so slightly.

She did not sit in her chair either. Instead, she walked up to L as he watched her with lustful eyes and sat right in between his legs, wiggling in between them to find a "comfortable" position. L gulped, an inevitable tightening sensation forming in his pants as she moved against his groin, forcing him to shift slightly. Misa, ever so merciless, leaned into him while arching her back, giving him a better view of her cleavage. His heart quickened and his mind slipped as what little resolve he had left was crumbling, and fast.

"So...I see the surveillance cameras were installed in the Yotsuba Group's conference room" She said, smiling dubiously. Again, the detective failed to conjure words, and only nodded his head to confirm her statement.

"...and...do you have any suspicions on who it could be?" She asked innocently.

She was relishing the effect she had on him, her own excitement growing as L began to crack under her spell. Giving in to his desire, L slowly brought his arm around her waist, and ran a hand up her thigh and in between her legs with feather-soft strokes. Misa's breathing became shallow and her eyes fluttered closed as she felt his lips suckling on her neck. He sucked harder and a moan escaped her lips. Misa turned her head to face him and L quickly brought his lips against hers eagerly.

He hugged her closer to him, pressing her back against his chest. As they continued to kiss, L brought the arm around her waist up to caress her perky breasts. Simultaneously, he slid his other hand up under the hem of her nightgown to caress the moist, sensitive flesh between her legs, causing Misa to move her hips against him in a slow, sensual rhythm, that further stimulated him. L moved his fingers over her nipples, which now showed through the flimsy fabric of her nightgown while thoroughly exploring the folds of her sex, causing Misa to clutch his knees frantically. His strokes on her sex quickened and Misa gasped as she teetered on the edge of her climax, realizing that he had turned the tables on her as she was about to come undone in his arms. The original plan was for _him_ to be hopelessly lost in her, not the other way around.

Before he could finish her off, she turned around and without warning, plunged her hands into L's jeans, grasping his shaft firmly. He groaned and closed his eyes, lost in the long strokes of her hand. She smiled triumphantly, knowing that she had regained the upper hand and that now it was him the one squirming underneath her touch, just as she'd intended. She kissed him fully while increasing the speed of her administrations until she was rubbing him with persistent, short little strokes. L bit his lip and fought the urge to climax all over her hand.

He broke the kiss abruptly and in an instant, she was on her back on top of his desk. He took his shirt off and threw it behind him before leaning over her, kissing as much of her as he could with desperate, wanton kisses. She ran her hands over his arms and back, encouraging him to continue. While he was preoccupied, Misa unbuttoned his jeans and dropped them around his hips, freeing his engorged erection. She grasped him once more, but this time L would not have it. He took the offending hand and entwined his fingers in hers. With the other hand, he slipped her panties off and spread her legs, making her quiver in anticipation. L brought his face close to hers, his long, dark bangs lightly brushing against her forehead.

"Misa..." He whispered huskily, sending more shivers up her spine. She responded with a gentle, loving kiss that made him breathless. He then straightened up, grabbed her hips and slowly pressed himself inside her, joining her in a duet of amorous sighs and sounds of pleasure. She moaned loudly at their union, writhing as her body took him again and again, relishing the look of ravenous desire on his face.

L moaned as well, enraptured by the feeling of being inside her. She felt too good to him, like a perfect pleasure drug that drowned his senses, making him completely stupid and completely happy all at once. His breathing became increasingly more rugged as he rhythmically pumped into her, making her squirm and buck her hips against his. Misa gripped the edge of the desk tightly, burning with a desire that only he could quench. L threw his head back as pleasurable waves hit him each time he entered her. Every push drove him to greater high as Misa's walls squeezed him harder, drew him closer. She cried out for him. He felt the pressure of his inevitable explosion and he knew there wasn't much more he could take. As the speed and intensity of his thrusts increased, Misa felt a thrill of pleasure finally release. She arched her back and cried out as the gratifying spasms of her climax crashed over her. L followed soon after, gripping her hips tightly, spilling himself inside her with a forceful shudder. Panting, he continued to slide into her slowly, finishing, unwinding. Once spent, he remained still until he felt able to move without falling over in a lustful daze. He collapsed back in his chair, breathless yet energized, his mind completely devoid of anything that wasn't her. Misa slowly got up from the table and he admired her as she stood before him, with the monitor lights outlining her delicate figure.

'_How did I ever get so lucky?' _He asked himself, incredulous.

Then, without warning, she jumped onto his lap and hugged him tightly, sobbing into his shoulder. L was immediately confused, and though he could not see her face but he could feel that she was shaking. He took her arms and moved her so he could get a better look at her, and it was then that he saw she was crying.

"Why? Did I do something wrong?" He asked with concern.

"No, don't think that. I'm crying because you did everything right" She said, wiping her eyes. Her words puzzled him even more, and she noticed. "Sorry...I never thought I would be one of those people that cry after sex..." She said, shaking her head and getting a hold of herself. "It's just...that this is so perfect. You're so amazing and I've been nothing but horrible to you...when we met I said horrible things to you and I've been nothing but trouble, I don't deserve you..." She said finally, choking on another sob.

L kissed her. He understood what she meant, and to him it was all the same. Her insults never truly hurt him. He wanted to express to her how much she had done for him already, but he couldn't find the words to do it, so he simply waited until she calmed down. When she did, he let go of her so they could gather their clothing. Watari would be getting up soon and it wouldn't be good if he were to walk in there and see them as they were.

"You know what's funny and terrible at the same time?" She said, sniffling, but with a small smile on her face.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I never thought I would have sex with a guy whose name I don't even know" She said. "That's really bad" She giggled.

"And I never thought I would have sex with a model suspected of being a killer" He responded thoughtfully. "To be quite honest, your situation isn't that rare. I think I beat you on this one."

She playfully swatted his chest and rolled her eyes at him. He shrugged.

"So I guess this means you won't tell me your real name, huh?" She asked. L looked at her with a hint of a smile and shook his head. She rolled her eyes and sighed.

"That's alright. I'll just guess your name, like in Rumpelstiltskin!"

He looked at her, trying to determine if she was serious. She was. He had to admit that his girlfriend's antics were unlike anyone else's and thoroughly amusing.

"If it makes you happy, do it, though be assured that I, unlike Rumpelstiltskin, will not give away my name by dancing and singing it out loud in a song." He said seriously. Misa laughed and began to think.

"Let's see..." She said thoughtfully. "It's probably something that starts with an L...you look like you could be a...Luke!" She said expectantly.

L shook his head.

"Lance?" She said. L shook his head once more.

"Leonard? Leo? Logan? Lee?!" She asked growing more impatient with each shake of his head. As much of a waste of time this was, he found it humorous.

"Ok...you gotta give me a hint!" She whined. "Has your name ever been used in a song?..." She asked, hoping he would tell her as much.

"Hm...not to my knowledge though even if it were, I wouldn't tell you that." He said. "That would be cheating."

"Alright...what nationality are you?" She asked thinking that his background would rule out certain types of names.

"I'm European, a fact that will be of little use to you in trying to guess my name" He told her contently.

"Well FINE then, I guess I'll just have to TICKLE it out of you" She said as she approached him menacingly with a mischevious smile.

"Misa...you'll do no such thing" He told her in a warning tone as he slowly backed away from her.

"I sense someone is ticklish!" She said, lunging herself at him. He dodged her easily and she ran after him again. He took both her hands and playfully held them to her side, careful not to hurt her. L was by no mean a large man but he still outsized Misa, and could easily overpower her. Misa laughed uncontrollably as L held both her wrists in one of his hands and began to tickle _her. _

"NOT FAIR!" She said in between gasps and laughter. She managed to pull free from him so she could tackle him again. She tripped and fell right into him clumsily and L laughed out loud. It was the first time she had ever heard him laugh and it was a nice, clear, masculine laugh that she longed to hear again and again. She looked at him as he held her arms down once more. His eyes met hers and for a second, they both froze there, staring at each other. L felt an unfamiliar, but good, fluttering feeling and he wanted to make Misa his, but more than just a sexually. Likewise, Misa felt her heart flutter happily as she looked at him, and she wanted nothing more than to be like this with him. Both felt as though they had something they desperately wanted to say, yet neither spoke.

Misa was the first to break the moment as she tried her hardest to break free and tickle him. In the end, the two ended up with him standing behind her, holding her from behind. They laughed at their predicament. Suddenly, the door to the main investigation room opened. L and Misa tensed and froze in that position as they briskly turned to look at who was entering the investigation room.

Thankfully, it was just Watari. The older man paused for a second to digest what he was seeing. Once he was certain his eyes weren't playing tricks on him, he beamed at the couple, overjoyed by how happy they looked together. L and Misa, separated from their current position and greeted him. Misa had half her body behind L since she wasn't exactly wearing something decent. The old man noticed the slight awkwardness and even though he didn't care for Misa's state of undress, he decided to leave them.

L stood staring at the closing door and Misa lightly tugged at his sleeve, effectively gaining his attention.

"I guess I'll get going upstairs to change" She said before she pecked him on the lips and walked away.

L pressed his finger to his lips, as if tracing where she had just kissed him. '_What am I doing?...What's happening to me?` _He thought, reflecting back on the strange fluttering feeling he'd experienced moments ago. He looked down at the floor with a slight frown and quickly dismissed the thought, believing that he was just overthinking it. With that, he turned back to his work._  
_

-_Meanwhile, elsewhere-_

Kyosuke Higuchi was getting ready for another day in the life of Kira. He sat in his armchair, sipping a cup of black coffee, smirking viciously as he stared at a picture in his hands. It was a picture of Misa. He reveled in all he had accomplished with the death note, yet, he still wanted more. He wanted Misa.

"Rem" He said out loud. As he spoke, a tall, thin, skeletal figure with yellow eyes, purple hair and curved spine materialized next to him.

"Yes?" It replied to him in a dull monotone.

"I am taking a pause from punishing criminals. Over the next few days, I will be dedicating myself solely to one purpose" He announced to her. Rem couldn't care less what Higuchi did. She was only here because Light had sent Higuchi the Death Note that she was now bound to. The notebook in Higuchi's possession was Light's original Death Note. For some reason that she did not understand, Light had made Ryuk trade notebooks with her, forcing her to follow this vile human. Even though Higuchi was the one keeping the notebook, Light was still its rightful owner. He had given Higuchi instructions to punish criminals along with anyone he wanted, in exchange for keeping the death note long term. She looked at Higuchi's face as it contorted into a twisted smile.

"And do you want to know what that sole purpose is going to be?" He asked her, barely containing his laughter.

Rem really did not want to know. She was already annoyed that he had called her since she hated spending time with Higuchi. All he talked about were his petty ambitions, conquests, and other things that were meaningless to a being like Rem.

"What is it?" She asked, obliging him. He turned Misa's picture over so that Rem could see it.

"I'm going to make Misa Amane my wife!" He said laughing triumphantly. "Money, power, AND a beautiful wife. That's enough to make anyone envious!" He said.

Rem was very interested now. She had seen Misa during the interviews with Yotsuba and she had to admit that she looked happier than ever. Rem did not know what had caused this change in Misa, but what she did know was that she did not want any harm to come to the girl. Or rather, she would not allow it.

Rem's eyes glowed red as she lifted a bony finger toward Higuchi.

"I do not like this idea. If any harm should come to Misa, I will dispose of your life, Kyosuke Higuchi" She told him severely. Higuchi was speechless. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. This whole time Rem had been nothing but indifferent toward him and all things human, yet here she was threatening to kill him over some girl. He figured that there must be something more to this than he knew.

"Very well, Rem. No need to overreact." He said, a nervous lump forming in his throat. "I'm not planning to kill her. In fact, as my wife, Misa would enjoy many benefits of a luxurious life and attention from a loving husband" He said trying to appease the Shinigami. The god of death narrowed her eyes at him, not trusting a word of what he said.

"Mark my words, if you make a move to kill Misa, I will write your name in my death note." She said with finality.

"You have my word, I will not kill her." He said, a drop of sweat dripping from his forehead. With that, the Shinigami disappeared. Once she was gone, Higuchi sighed with relief and tended back to his coffee.

-_Back at Taskforce HQ-_

The members of Taskforce sat around teasing Matsuda. To make up for the whole Takahashi debacle, Matsuda had offered to come into work wearing the same ridiculous "thug" outfit he wore the night he tried to get into Kuroi Uma Bar. His coworkers had all been informed of the incident but even so, they would not stop pestering him over it, and now he was the laughing stock of taskforce. Matsuda simply sighed and accepted his fate.

"You guys are never gonna let me live this down, are you?" He said, downcast.

"Nope! Never!" Said Aizawa laughing with the rest of the taskforce members.

Fun times like these were scarce in the lives of the Kira taskforce, and even L had to admit that the lighter mood was a nice change. That whole week in general had been relatively calm. This was in great part to the fact that Light had not been to headquarters in days. According to Chief Yagami, his son was swamped with school work and was taking a few days off from the investigation. This came as a surprise to everyone as Light had always been so adamant about helping out with the investigation. However, since he'd done so much already, they all understood.

While most of taskforce partook in the merriment, Misa sat quietly in her usual spot next to L, suffering in silence. She had woken up with a horrible headache that wouldn't go away, and she was feeling extremely nauseous. She found it odd since she rarely got nauseous and she hadn't eaten anything out of the ordinary lately. To top it all off, she had been getting constant text messages from Higuchi about his impending date offer. She had deferred his invitation and after the Takahashi episode, she turned him down. However, he was persistent and would not leave her alone. She made sure to put her phone on silent so as to not alarm L. She looked at the detective sitting in his seat, chewing lightly on his thumb thoughtfully. He was submerged in his work, oblivious as to what was happening with Higuchi.

"Ryuzaki, which of the Yotsuba group members do you think is most likely to be Kira?" Asked Chief Yagami, causing the other taskforce members to focus back on the investigation. L lconsidered the question as he stared at his computer screen. He had been studying the mysterious Yotsuba meetings since Weddy installed the surveillance cameras in their conference room a few days ago.

"Based on what Misa told us about Takahashi not knowing who Kira is, I was naturally curious as to whether _any_ of the other Yotsuba Group members knew who among them is Kira. It turns out, they do not." He said. The rest of the taskforce listened carefully.

"So, that left me with the task of carefully analyzing the dynamic of their conclave as well as their backgrounds. Having done that, I've narrowed it down to two possibilities...Reiji Namikawa and Kyosuke Higuchi. I am certain that Kira is one of those two." He said calmly.

That last part gave Misa the chills.

'_So there's a possibility that Kira is interested in me.' _She thought. '_At one point that would have flattered me, but now it only disgusts me' _She admitted to herself as she eyed her cellphone nervously. She felt queasy, followed by an urge to run for the nearest bathroom to puke her guts out. '_I'd better get out of here' _She thought, miserably.

"I'm tired! I'm gonna go take a nap!" She proclaimed suddenly. Everyone looked at her as she promptly got up from her chair and made her way to the stairs.

"Misa Misa, is everything ok? You've been very quiet today" Asked Matsuda. L was now listening in on the conversation since he too had noticed that she had been unusually silent.

"Oh! I'm fine, like I said I'm just tired" She said laughing nervously. "Oh, and Matsu, next time you need to go undercover, consult me. I'm an expert on disguises and frankly, yours looks like the work of an amateur!" She said boldly, making the others erupt into laughter before running out to the elevator lobby. '_Screw the stairs, I need to go up to my room NOW' _She thought desperately. Once she got there, she closed the door behind her, went to the bedroom and threw herself on the bed. She laid there for a few minutes, letting the queasiness pass. After some time, her phone lit up, indicating that she was receiving a call from someone. She picked it up and was extremely surprised to hear that it was Light.

"Hello, Misa?" Said Light over the phone.

"Yeah? It's me" She responded.

"How are you?" He asked her. She was perplexed. Since when did Light ask her how she was? In truth she doubted if he ever cared about how she was doing.

"I'm not feeling well, actually. Sorry, Light. Did you just want to talk because now isn't a good time" She told him as she felt the nausea returning.

"Oh, alright. I just wanted to tell you that I miss you and that I wanted to make it up to you for all the times I haven't been there for you" He told her. Misa was in shock. Out of all the things she expected from Light, this was not one of them. This was also a terrible time to talk and she didn't feel like pursuing the issue in her current state.

"Oh, wow. Thanks. That's really sweet of you Light but...like I said, I'm not feeling well. Can we talk about this later?" She asked, praying that he would let her go back to her nap.

"Yeah...sure. I also had a favor to ask of you, but we can discuss it then as well." He said.

"Alright, sounds good! Talk to you soon!" She said, trying to sound a bit more enthusiastic. Light said a quick goodbye and she hung up the phone, relieved. She threw herself back down on her bed but before she could doze off, her phone lit up once again. She rolled her eyes and thought '_What now, it'd better not be Light again. I'm not in the mood for these mind games' _

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hello Misa" Said a chilling voice from the other end. It was Higuchi. Misa tensed up as she realized who it was and could barely muster the control to speak normally.

"Hi Mr. Higuchi! To what do I owe the call?" She said as cheerfully as she could.

"You know what I want Misa. Your company tonight. Nothing serious, I would just like to spend some time with you" He said, giving her the creeps.

"I don't know about that Mr. Higuchi. It wouldn't look very good if we were to be seen together so soon after I just signed a contract with Yotsuba. I don't like scandal." She said, hoping that he would take that as an answer.

"Oh, but it wouldn't be a date or anything scandalous. I merely want to show you a few spots around town and chat with you. That's all. It would take but half and hour to and hour of your time." He told her. Misa silently considered his offer. '_If Higuchi is Kira, this could be very dangerous, not to mention that if L finds out, he'll be furious. On the other hand, if Higuchi is Kira, and he's as interested in me as I think he is, then maybe I can trick him into confessing that he's Kira. If we do that, then this whole case will be solved...' _She thought. '_Besides, it wouldn't be a date, and we're not going to a bar, so technically, I'm not breaking my promise to L' _

After what seemed like a long pause, she finally answered.

"Alright. But remember Mr. Higuchi, this isn't a date! This is just me getting to know you, ok? And I can only be out for half an hour!" She said.

"Yes, that's perfect. Would 7 be a good time for you?" He asked.

"Actually, could you make that 6? I don't want to be out too late" She responded.

"Very well. I'll see you at 6 my dear" He murmured into the phone. Misa got the creepy chills again. She agreed, and hung up the phone, seriously hoping that her efforts pay off and that this whole thing doesn't turn into another fiasco.


	12. Capture I

**Writer's Note: **_Hello readers! I love your comments, I'm like a review whore so please keep the reviews coming =] I can't tell you how much fun I'm having writing this fanfic; I have so many ideas, I can't wait to finally make them happen. __Anyways, this is chapter 12. It is extremely long, so much so that I had to split it into two chapters. It was kind of painful to write this one cause it was such a long scene. However, I think it's an important scene and I really wanted the characters' actions to make sense, so I took the time to explain their thought process and stuff. Hopefully it's not too boring haha. I look forward to reading your reviews (good or bad)!_

* * *

Misa mentally prepared herself to face the man suspected of being Kira. Like with Takahashi, she instructed Higuchi to pick her up at a different location, away from headquarters so as to not alert L and the others. This time, however, she would take the precaution of informing them that she was going out and that they should expect her back within half an hour. That way, if something happened and she took too long, they would know.

She walked into the main investigation room where the taskforce members were engrossed in their work.

"Everyone, I'm going out for a walk! I'll be back in half hour. Try not to miss me too much!" She announced cheerfully.

The rest of taskforce looked at her wearily, unsure if they should trust her going out on her own after what happened the week before. Misa maintained a cool facade as they all turned to L, awaiting his response. The detective noticed that all eyes were on him.

"Well, I don't see a problem with it" He said nonchalantly, turning back to his computer screen.

Having obtained L's approval, Misa relaxed a bit. She knew that by going out with Higuchi she was abusing the trust that L was placing on her, but in her mind she was doing it for a good cause. She walked up to the detective, who did not look at her until she was standing right next to him. He gave her a blank stare as she leaned down slightly and placed a tender kiss on his cheek.

'_I'm sorry my sweet panda but I want to do this for you. I want to be useful to you in solving this case' _She thought, resolute.

All eyes were on them at that moment. Most had a confused look, wondering why Misa had just kissed L. L simply looked at her surprised and touched his cheek where Misa had placed her lips. Before anyone could say a word about what she'd just done, Misa chuckled in that flirty way of hers, turned on her heel and walked towards the door.

"See you later!" She said, waving to all of them.

"Are you sure you don't want company?" Asked Mogi, still looking concerned. Misa turned back to look at him with the sweetest smile she could muster.

"Aw Mochi! Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it but thanks for the offer!" She told him. Mogi blushed slightly at her use of his nickname. With that, Misa walked out of headquarter toward the appointed meeting place with Higuchi.

'_Alright, now I just gotta be extra careful not to get in too deep. I'll get him to tell me if he's Kira, record it on my phone and then I'll ask to be dropped off. It should be quick' _She thought as she stood outside a crowded bus station.

She looked at her clock. It was 10 minutes past the appointed time.

'_Dammit Higuchi, at this rate I won't have enough time to get the information I need! I can't believe the nerve of some men to leave women waiting around' _She thought impatiently. Just then, a flashy red camaro pulled up in front of the bus station. She had no doubt that it was Higuchi.

"About damn time..." She mumbled to herself.

Her heart quickened as she walked up to the car and gave Higuchi a weak smile. She climbed inside and before she even had time to settle in, he drove away quickly, causing Misa to fall back against her seat.

Unbeknownst to her, she and Higuchi were not alone in the flashy car. In the back seat, invisible to her, sat the bony, white Shinigami, Rem.

"How are you my dear? I'm glad you decided to come out with me. I promise you won't regret it." He said, attempting to sound seductive but failing miserably. Instead, he just elicited a small grimace from Misa. Rem remained silent.

"No problem!" She said. '_Ew, this guy is such a sleaze' _She thought regretfully while smiling at him. He eyed her lasciviously out of the corner of his eye.

He ran his prying eyes over Misa's thighs, up her taut mid section to her round breasts, and finally ended at her pretty face. Higuchi could barely contain his desire.

"So Mr. Higuchi, I bet you're wondering why I'm spending time with you and not the other Yotsuba Group members that asked me out" She said. Higuchi raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Misa, just call me Higuchi, no need for formalities between us" He said with a crooked smile. "And I'm not surprised that those other idiots I work with asked you out as well. I mean, just look at you." He said, glancing at her appreciatively. "But do tell, why in particular, did you choose me?"

"Well, I remember that after my interview you complimented me on my appreciation for Kira. I think you and I feel the same way about him. But I have to admit that in the interview, I lied a little bit." She said, biting her bottom lip anxiously.

Rem looked closely at Misa, wondering what the young woman was up to. Rem had a hunch that whatever it was, it was dangerous.

"Is that so?" Asked Higuchi, in a low, menacing tone._  
_

"Yeah. In the interview I said that I was just grateful to Kira for killing my parents' murderer, but...I actually love Kira!" She finally admitted, fully turning to him with the most genuine expression she could muster.

Higuchi's eyes wandered toward her for a second as he took in what she had just told him. Then, without notice, he swung the car over to the side of the road and came to a stop to give her his undivided attention.

"You worship Kira, you say?" He asked her, studying her very carefully. Misa nodded her head, hoping that her performance so far was convincing.

Out of nowhere, Higuchi erupted into an uncontrollable fit of laughter. The man threw his head back as he released a maniacal type of laugh that gave Misa the chills. Misa stared at him, genuinely taken aback by his outburst. Even the Shinigami in the back seat stared at him with a mixture of confusion and derision.

'_What a psycho...I should get my phone ready, just in case.' _Thought Misa, reaching for her phone inside her purse. When she looked up, she nearly screamed as Higuchi brought his face really close to hers as though he was going to kiss her. She could feel his hot breath on her lips and she inwardly cringed, hoping that he wouldn't come any closer.

"Well that's perfect, my dear. And what would you do if I told you that I know Kira, personally?" He murmured, looking at her lips longingly.

'_This is it' _Thought Misa, pressing the record button on her phone. This could be the moment she had been hoping for, Higuchi's confession. She went in for the kill by placing her lips close to his ear, sending shivers through Higuchi with each word that she whispered.

"Well...I'd tell you that I _really_ want to meet him, and thank him for avenging my parents." She told him seductively. "In truth, I love Kira so much, that I would marry him on the spot." She finished saying. At this last part, Higuchi could barely contain his excitement.

'_This is going even better than I expected__! Misa Amane will be mine!" _He thought, holding back a triumphant smile. In fact, he had to try really hard to not blurt out that he was Kira. As much as he wanted to make her his right there and then, Higuchi wasn't ready to spill his secret just yet. Misa noticed Higuchi's twisted smile and gave him a smile of her own, not realizing what she was getting herself into.

'_This is going even better than I expected! Higuchi's going to tell me he's Kira!' _She thought, excitedly. Her perceived victory was short-lived however, as Higuchi put on a poker face and started the car again. Misa was confused. '_Huh?'_

She really thought that she had him there.

'_What the hell?! I thought he was gonna tell me his secret! Higuchi should have definitely gone for that...I guess this means he's not Kira after all? Hmm...that leaves Namikawa then...'_ She thought, disappointed. She carefully reached for her phone to turn off the recording and right after, Higuchi spoke.

"That was quite a statement you made back there, Misa. Are you sure you're ready to back it up?" He asked her, keeping his eyes on the road. She looked unsure but decided to play along. _  
_

"Of course! I'm a woman of my word." She boasted.

"I don't believe a word you're saying." He said.

Misa gasped. '_Shit, does he suspect what I'm doing? No way...how?!' _She wondered, panicking on the inside. "What?...why? Why would you say that?" She asked.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "I think there' s something more...something you're not telling me. Am I right, Misa?" He told her, smirking. Misa looked at him, thinking quickly to see if there was anything that she said that could have given her away. She couldn't think of a single thing. Regardless, if this plan was going to succeed, she would have to take a leap of faith. '_Time for plan B, but since I don't really have one, this means it's time to improvise!' _She thought.

"Bahhh you caught me" She said throwing her hands up in mock surrender."You're more clever than I thought, Higuchi. I guess I'll just have to come clean!" She said. "I'm looking for Kira, because I'm the Second Kira" She said finally.

-_Back at taskforce HQ-_

A seemingly disinterested L looked at the clock on his computer. '_It's been exactly an hour since Misa left. She said she would be back within half an hour...' _

L did not consider himself the overprotective, jealous type of boyfriend, but he did find it strange that Misa would give a time frame for her outing and then completely miss it.

'_How strange...I don't want to believe that she's up to no good, yet something tells me that is exactly what's going on here.' _He deduced, while staring at the floor. He felt a strange sensation tugging at his heart, as though something was wrong. Just then, his thoughts were interrupted by Watari coming into the main investigation room with a tray of coffee and sugar cubes. L cheered up at the sight of it. Watari brought the tray over to L, who gingerly poured himself coffee and then proceeded to fill it with an obscene amount of sugar cubes.

'_I'll give her a call in fifteen minutes. That should clear up all suspicions' _He thought contently as he swirled the mountain of sugar cubes in the coffee. Watari brought the rest of the coffee around for the remaining taskforce members, who longed for the caffeine boost to help them carry on with their tasks.

-_A few miles from town-_

Rem sat in the back seat of the car, completely confused by whatever Misa was doing. The Shinigami seldom experienced the same emotions as humans, but in this case Rem actually felt a little anxious. After that confession, there was no way that Higuchi would leave Misa alone.

'_What are you doing Misa? Why would you tell him that you're the Second Kira? Did Light Yagami set you up to do this?' _She wondered silently.

Higuchi's mouth hung wide open in disbelief and his eyes went wide in utter shock. _So that's it. That's why Rem wanted to protect her! She's the Second Kira...' _He thought.

He almost didn't react fast enough to avoid a car in front, and had to swerve violently to avoid it. Misa squealed at the sudden motion. Higuchi's side track onto one of the smaller roads led them into what looked like a dock that was under construction. He stopped the car abruptly in front of a large warehouse and simply stared at her with a wicked grin.

"Is...something wrong?" Asked Misa nervously.

"You say you're the second Kira?"

"Mhm."

" Then prove it to me." He said, dangerously.

'_Fuck. I didn't think this far ahead...so much for plan B...' _She thought, fighting to remain calm.

"Pr-prove it to you?" Asked Misa shakily, trying to control her nerves.

"Yes" He said in a low voice, narrowing his eyes at her.

"...By...killing someone?...right now?!"

Higuchi assented.

'_Double fuck. This is NO BUENO' _She thought, frantic.

"...um...sure...I'll do that...cause I can, right? Cause I'm the Second Kira..." She said, tripping over her words. The Shinigami in the back seat practically did a facepalm. Why did the human she care for have to be so troublesome?

"Very well, I want you to kill Arayoshi Hatori. He's been a complete pest to our secret meetings these past few weeks." Said Higuchi.

"..."

Misa was at a loss. she knew she was screwed now as she had no way to successfully prove that she was the second Kira. Her only option was to run for it.

"Um, yeah. I can do that. But, you have to turn around and promise not to peek!" She said. '_Alright, as soon as he turns around, I'll open the door and make a run for it.' _

Higuchi turned around as she instructed. Misa went for the lock, but it wouldn't budge. She nearly gasped and a surge of panic spread through her as she sat there frozen. She swallowed thickly as she tried the lock again with no success. Her heart beat quickly as she realized she was trapped with a deranged man who would probably kill her with his bare hands as soon as he figured out she'd been lying this whole time.

Rem looked at Misa panicking in her seat, knowing full well that the young woman was not in a position to kill anyone. In fact, if anything, she was the one likely to be killed today.

'_I will help you, Misa' _Thought Rem, lifting her Death Note and writing down the given name. Misa, of course, had no idea that this was happening. She was still frozen in panic, her nausea was starting to come back, adrenaline surging through her body. She did the only thing she could do and hit the speed call button on her cell phone.

-_Back at HQ-_

_'The fifteen minutes are up. I should call Misa' _Thought L, abandoning the piece of key lime pie he had been eating. He picked up his phone but before he dialed, it lit up unexpectedly. It appeared that Misa was calling him.

"Hello?" He said, answering the phone. The rest of taskforce looked at him, curious as to who he was talking to over the phone. L listened for her voice, but Misa never answered. He stayed on the line for a few more seconds, and then it went dead.

"Hm..." said L, not liking what just happened. He called her again but right after the first ring, her voicemail came up as though she had rejected the call. Something was definitely up.

"Watari. Please locate Misa's cell phone." Said L out loud, drawing the full attention of the task force members. The giant "W" materialized on the computer screens.

"Right away" Said Watari's voice. Everyone waited in anticipation.

"L, I've located Miss Amane and she appears to be in Port Imperium, twenty miles east from here." Informed the old man.

"Twenty miles east...there's no way she could have covered that distance in just over an hour on foot." Said L, nibbling on his thumb.

"What's going on Ryuzaki? Do you think someone may have kidnapped Misa Misa?!" Asked an alarmed Matsuda. The others looked equally concerned. Although they never admitted it, they were all quite fond of her, and didn't want any harm to come to her.

"That's not entirely impossible" Said L gravely. He hoped he was wrong about this, but he had a hunch.

"Watari, where are Namikawa and Higuchi right this moment?" Asked L.

"Mr. Namikawa is out of the country on a business trip, and according to nearby cameras, Mr. Higuchi is...also in Port Imperium." Said the old man.

-_At the dock, Port Imperium- _

Misa closed her eyes tightly, frightened and shaking in her seat as she waited for Higuchi to turn around and kill her. She had no more brilliant ideas up her sleeve, this was it. She was going to die now. Her last glint of hope rested in L finding her but even then, he probably would not make it in time.

"Well, did you do it?" Asked Higuchi impatiently. Misa said nothing. She just shook in her seat, trying not to whimper, and hoping that Higuchi would kill her quickly.

Higuchi took out his cell phone without turning around and dialed a number. He asked to be communicated with Hatori when suddenly the man on the line started screaming and yelling for help. It appeared that Hatori had just had a massive heart attack and was pronounced dead on the spot. The line went dead and Higuchi dropped his phone. There was a long pause quickly followed by Higuchi's maniacal cackle.

"SO IT IS TRUE! You really ARE the Second Kira!" He yelled at Misa. Misa opened her eyes in shock and looked at him with her her mouth wide open. "HATORI IS DEAD!" He celebrated. Misa's heart pounded and a million questions flooded her head.

_'what? But...how?! I didn't do anything! Could it have been coincidence? That would be a really fucking crazy coincidence but what else could it be?!' _Thought Misa, horrified. Higuchi came closer to Misa, as if to whisper something in her ear. She gasped and backed away as far as she could. This was too much for her, she needed to go home. When she could not back away any more, Higuchi whispered something into her ear that made her skin crawl.

"Misa, you're going to be my wife because I am Kira" He told her with a malicious grin.

Misa was horrified. She wanted so badly to run away but she knew she had to do her best to play it cool. Her heart was pounding so loudly in her ears now it felt as though someone were playing drums inside her head. She did what she set out to do and without making a big movement, she reached for her cell phone and pressed the call button once again.

"...what?" She asked feebly, pretending to not hear him. Higuchi could not contain himself any longer. He grabbed Misa by the arm, reclined her seat and pushed himself on top of her. The brisk motion caused Misa to drop her cell phone.

"I'm sorry! Mr Higuchi-I mean Higuchi. I'm...really not feeling well and I need to go home! Now please!" She said shakily, trying to divert his attention away from the lit cell phone. However, it was useless, for Higuchi was already aware of what she had been doing.

"You hear me perfectly well. Now tell me...what were you doing with that phone huh?!" He said pressing his whole weight on her. Misa screamed and began fighting against him. He forcefully wrestled both her hands into one of his and painfully held them, pinning them above her head. Misa shuffled to get out of his hold and spat at him, angering the man. He swiftly backhanded her across the face, causing her to scream. Rem's eyes glowed beet red with rage as she yelled for Higuchi to stop this.

"Shut up, I'm not going to kill her!" He said to the Shinigami through gritted teeth. Misa barely noticed this since she was busy struggling against her captor.

Rem saw that Misa's lifespan remained unchanged and knew that Higuchi would not kill her. As hard as it was for her, Rem decided to stand back and not interfere.

"ANSWER ME! What were you doing?!" He asked her. Misa started to cry loudly as she tried to buckle him off of her. He grabbed her by the hips and pressed her against his groin. He brought his angry face down to her neck and began to brutally assault the skin there with forceful kisses that left her skin red and tender.

"NOOO! Stop this!" She yelled but it was no use. Higuchi forced her button-up blouse open to reveal her chest to him, slithering his cold, unwelcomed hands over her breasts. He then spread her legs and forced himself between them so Misa could feel his erection pressing against her sex. Misa cried even louder. She knew her phone was still on so L and taskforce were probably listening.

"HIGUCHI IS KIRA! HIGUCHI IS KIRA!" She yelled as loud as she could so that at least her mission of helping L figure out Kira's identity would be accomplished. Higuchi covered her mouth with his hand and turned to the phone on the floor. He reached for it but she kneed him in the groin before he could touch it. Higuchi yelped and doubled over, holding his crotch with his free hand. Unfortunately, he still had all his weight on top of Misa, and she was unable to shake herself free from under him. She cried in frustration as she missed her only opportunity of escape. Higuchi recovered, closed the cell phone, and backhanded her once more before assaulting her mouth with his.

A noise distracted him for a second. Higuchi's cell phone was receiving a call, which he decided to ignore in favor of more "pleasurable" activities. The phone rang again and again, until finally, he stopped what he was doing, looked down at a distraught Misa and glared at her.

"If you so much as make a SOUND, I will make this night so miserable for you, you'll beg me to kill you" He said in a dangerous growl. Misa's face was covered in tears and she held back her cries as she nodded her head in defeat. Pleased with her cooperation, Higuchi reached for the phone and answered it. Upon hearing who his caller was, Higuchi's eyes went wide, and he swallowed nervously. It was the last person he'd expect to hear from.


	13. Capture II

**Writer's Note: **_Blah blah blah...This is the second part of "Capture" ...R&R._

* * *

Everyone at Headquarters was scrambling around, getting ready to jump into action. As soon as they found Higuchi's and Misa's whereabouts, L organized the officers and deviced a plan to bring her back. Matsuda and Mogi volunteered to go in first. Aizawa and Ide would back them up and Chief Yagami as well as Ukita would stay behind with L, overseeing the operation.

"Remember, no one do anything impulsive, and listen to my commands. Tonight, we will capture Higuchi" Said the raven-haired detective. '_Misa...that woman never listens' _He thought impatiently, hoping that she was alright. '_I have to keep focused. It's the only way to see her out of this and Higuchi into custody' _He said to himself, gripping his knees.

As Matsuda and Mogi were leaving, Watari's voice could be heard from the speakers and they all stopped to hear what the old man had to say.

"Ryuzaki, I'm receiving a call from Misa's cell phone" Said Watari.

"Put her through" Ordered L.

Watari aired the call for all to hear as instructed. There was rustling, and then a faint voice whispering something that sounded like "what?" followed by a crashing sound and then, Misa's voice asking Higuchi to take her home. All of taskforce stood there, listening intently to what was happening. L's grip on his knees tensed even more as he heard more rustling and then Higuchi yelling at Misa, saying "YOU HEARD ME. What were you doing with that phone?!" There was more rustling and then Misa's frantic screams as what sounded like a fight between the two ensued.

Through the struggling, Higuchi's voice could be heard yelling, "ANSWER ME! What were you doing?!" at Misa. Her cries intensified and she screamed for Higuchi to stop doing what L and the taskforce members could only imagine that he was doing to her. Finally, Misa yelled out, "Higuchi is Kira!" loudly for all to hear, effectively sending even more chills through the detective and police officers. Immediately after that, the call went dead. The investigation room was completely silent. L felt as though he was about to be sick, a feeling shared among the other taskforce members.

L's hands shook and his knuckles were white from gripping his knees so tightly. His head was toward the floor and his dark hair obscured his expression. No one said a word but their horrified expressions at hearing Misa possibly being raped, or murdered said it all.

"Forget everything I just said." Spoke L, in a low dangerous tone that was unlike anything the officers had ever heard from him. It was controlled, yet they could just tell that he was upset.

"There is no time. We may already be too late. I need you to stay here until I give the order, is that clear?" He said, still looking at the floor, facing away from them. They all agreed without question.

"Watari. I need you to call Higuchi's cell phone" Ordered the detective in an icy tone. Watari did as he was told, not wasting time with pleasantries.

-_At the docks, in Higuchi's car-_

Higuchi felt fear. He heard a cold voice on the other end of the line from a person he never expected to hear from.

"Higuchi. This is detective L. Is Misa Amane with you, alive?" Asked L. Higuchi took a moment to recover from the shock. He knew of L, and had even hired another detective to find his identity, to no avail. Higuchi knew that if there was anyone who could send him to death row for what he'd done, it was the man at the other end of the line.

"Answer me." Said L, in a tone that cut through Higuchi like a knife. He looked at Misa, crying silently, under him, in the reclined passenger's seat of his car.

"Yes..." He said, sounding weaker than he'd meant to.

"Is she badly injured?" Asked L next. If it turned out that Higuchi had raped his girlfriend and/or beat her to the point where she was dying, L would make sure that Higuchi paid the consequences with every last bit of sweat and blood that he could muster.

"What's it to you anyway?! She's fine! Her and I were just having a moment, nothing serious." He said, getting angry.

Misa looked up at her captor, catching on to the fact that whomever Higuchi was speaking with was asking about her. Higuchi did not seem the least bit happy.

"Listen to me, Higuchi. I know that you're Kira and that you've been carrying out murders of various competitors to benefit Yotsuba Corporation. I have been following your little private meetings for some time now and I have enough evidence to put you in the worst, most brutal prison on earth for at least three lifetimes. However, I am willing to strike a deal with you." Said L.

"Ok. I'm listening." Responded Higuchi, a sweat drop falling from his brow.

"You are going to give me back Misa Amane. You will not touch her. Mark my words, if I so much as suspect that you have ignored my warning, I promise you, things will end very badly for you." Said L, seriously. "I will let you go, but I will later bring you in for questioning. Based on your cooperation, I can obtain amnesty from Interpol on your behalf." L finished explaining.

'_This chick must really important to him' _Thought Higuchi, quickly thinking of how he could turn this in his favor. As it stood, even if he let Misa go, there was no guarantee that L wouldn't screw him over, and from the sound of it, that was a definite possibility.

"Very well, L. I accept your deal, but I'm a business man as you know, and as such I would like to negotiate the terms of this "deal." I want you to come here in person. Alone." Said Higuchi, a sinister grin forming on his face. At the mention of L, Misa perked up a little. She felt a glimmer of hope return to her then, only to be obscured by Higuchi's request. It sounded like foul play and L knew it. However, Higuchi did have Misa so as far as they were both concerned, Higuchi held the ace for now and L knew that as well.

"Fine. Stay where you are. I will be there in 20 minutes." Said the detective before hanging up the phone.

-_At HQ- _

"Ryuzaki! Are you sure about going there? It's gotta be a trap..." Said Matsuda as L stood from his seat.

"For once, I agree with Matsuda" Admitted Aizawa. The others nodded in agreement. L looked down at the floor pensively.

"I have to go. I'm going to try to bait him into showing me how he kills and besides, I never said anything about going alone. We will capture Higuchi tonight, be sure of that." Responded the detective. With that, he left the investigation room.

Chief Yagami stayed behind with Ukita as planned. He sat at his desk and dialed a number.

"What are you doing chief?" Asked Ukita.

"I'm calling Light. He said that if there were any major developments with the Yotsuba case, that I should call him immediately. He wants to be a part of this, and I'd say that Higuchi's capture is a pretty major development that Light would want to know about." Said Chief Yagami.

-_At the Port Imperium-_

Higuchi stood on the dock, holding Misa roughly by the hair with one hand, while restraining her wrists in his other hand.

'_Damn having small wrists' _She thought, wincing from the pain of having her hair tugged. Behind them stood Rem, who was watching the situation closely, interested in the human who was coming to save Misa from Higuchi.

Meanwhile, Higuchi stood stoic, thinking through his plan. '_L, don't think I'm such an idiot as to believe in your stupid treaty. I'm going to kill you tonight, and then I will truly be safe from retribution.' _He thought.

On the far end of the dock, Higuchi saw a light and heard the sound of a car door opening and closing. Moments later he saw a figure approach them. It was a man of slender build, tousled black hair, and pale skin, wearing a white long sleeved t-shirt and jeans. The man slowly walked toward them with his hands in his pockets, seeming unperturbed by the situation. If he didn't know better, Higuchi might have mistaken the man for some random civilian walking the docks. Misa's face lit up as she recognized L. She instinctively stepped forward, wanting to run to him, but she was pulled back roughly by Higuchi.

"Ouch!" She yelled. Higuchi noticed her reaction to the man walking toward them, and he knew that it was someone Misa recognized.

'_Could this simple looking man be L? I expected him to be much older, and more professional-looking. This guy can't be a day over 25 and I'm supposed to believe he's the famed detective with the power to control the police in every country? What does L take me for, a sucker?!'_ Thought Higuchi, feeling as though someone had just insulted his intelligence.

When L was about 30 feet away from them, Higuchi took out a gun that he had been carrying in the back of his pants.

"Don't come any closer!" He yelled as he pointed the gun in L's direction. Misa screamed and scrambled around in Higuchi's grip, making him lose aim. Higuchi, in anger pointed the gun at her head.

"Shut up! I'm sick of you, woman, you've done nothing but cry this past half an hour!" He said angrily. Misa screamed again and this time Rem intervened.

"Don't you dare Higuchi! Remember what I said." Said the Shinigami with murderous intent.

Higuchi gave an angry yell as he pointed the gun at L once more. Tears spilled from Misa's eyes as she begged Higuchi to not do anything. L simply stood there, looking calm as always.

"Higuchi, Kira, if you kill me, you will be arrested within seven minutes. I gave order to the police that if I don't call them back in 10 minutes, they can send out a team of officers to arrest you." Said L. Higuchi clenched his teeth in anger.

"And you expect me to believe that YOU'RE the real L?! I'm insulted!" He yelled.

"Tell me, Kira, how do you kill? I'm curious. You're waving a gun at me but that's not your style. Why don't you show me your real preferred method of killing?" Asked L, sounding like his usual self. Misa couldn't believe it. Was he trying to get himself killed?

Higuchi looked uneasy at first. '_Does this guy have a death wish? He doesn't seem the least bit afraid of me...but if I kill him and he turns out to he the real L then I'll win. If he dies of a heart attack, why would the police ever pin it on me? They can't, not without the notebook anyway.' _Higuchi burst out laughing with his bone-chilling laugh. '_Yes, killing him with the notebook is the most prudent thing to do. I could just tell the police that we were quarreling over Misa Amane when he suddenly collapsed and died of a heart attack!'_

"You want to see how I kill? Sure, but first you must give me your name" He said. L looked at him closely and asked what Higuchi planned to do with his name.

"You'll see. I'll give you a first hand look at how I kill" Said Higuchi smiling like the villain that he was. L looked at him expectantly, knowing well that this was the perfect opportunity to learn how Kira kills. He couldn't pass this up.

"I agree to give you my name but only on one condition." Said L, holding up a finger at him. Higuchi listened carefully at what L said next. "I will write my name down in a piece of paper and give it to Misa in her hands, to give to you. After she delivers the paper, you must let her go free. I will stay here and you can point your gun at me, or do whatever you'd like, so long as you show me how you kill. Is that fair?" asked L.

Higuchi agreed. He didn't care if this guy knew about the death note since he would be dead soon anyway. Misa cried and shook her head, not wanting to go along with this plan.

From a safe distance, Matsuda and Mogi were hiding behind some crates, waiting for L's signal to move in. They watched the scene unfold before them, anxiously. Matsuda felt someone move behind them and turned around swiftly and pointed his gun at Light Yagami.

"Light! What are you doing here?!" Whispered Matsuda, thankful that he didn't shoot.

"My father told me what was happening. I came to help" Said Light, lying. The truth was that he wanted first row view to L's demise. Light could barely contain his delight when he received the call from his father explaining what was happening. This was even better than he'd expected!

While Matsuda and Mogi were turned to L and Higuchi, Light surreptitiously took out a piece of the death note from his watch. He unfolded it and read it. Satisfied, Light wrote down a name: Kyosuke Higuchi. As it turned out, one could kill a person without using their name by having someone else kill them using a detailed physical description. In this case, Light wrote Higuchi's name in the Death Note with details of his death being '_Commits suicide after killing all dark-haired, slender, pale men, wearing white and blue.' _ Being that L was the only one around matching that description, Higuchi would kill only him, or at least mortally wound him.

Light was triumphant, a dark smile playing upon his lips. He looked at his watch and looked in the direction of Higuchi, L, and Misa. Only 40 seconds to go.

'_This serves you right, L, for trying to take what's mine.' _He thought. '_Now thanks to Misa's stupidity, you're going to die'_ he thought, barely able to contain his laughter.

Back on the dock, Misa walked slowly toward L, becoming more emotional the closer she got to him. This was all her fault. She swore to herself then and there that if they got out of this alive, she would never again put him in a similar position. When she finally reached him, she was full on sobbing.

"I'm so sorry for this..." She said, her lips quivering. L looked at her and gave her a small smile. As promised, he took out a small piece of paper and a small pencil that he always carried in his back pocket and scribbled something on it. He extended his hand out to Misa, and she took the piece of paper from him, purposely brushing their fingertips. Misa wanted to run into his arms so badly, but Higuchi had a gun pointed at them, threatening to shoot if they made any "sudden movements."

She turned around to walk back to Higuchi. She did not even bother to read the name L had scribbled on the paper, since she was certain it was a fake. At least she prayed it was.

'_L would never give away his real name like this' _She thought. She reached Higuchi, gave him a look of pure contempt and then shoved the piece of paper into his hand. She made to move away as agreed, but Higuchi simply trapped her hand in his and pulled her toward his body. She screamed in protest and L looked at him sharply. _  
_

_'I'm not surprised. Higuchi, you're nothing but another typical deranged bastard'_ thought L.

"HAHA You think I'm an idiot?! I'm not letting Misa Amane go until I test out my killing method on you." Proclaimed Higuchi. He pulled Misa with him towards his car. He had left the door open in case of a quick getaway. Misa tried to elbow him but she failed and he once again pointed the gun at her head. Higuchi threw Misa inside the car, reaching inside. L saw that he had pulled out a small black notebook.

"You wanted to see how I kill?! WELL EXPERIENCE IT FIRST HAND!" Yelled the madman. He opened the notebook and just as his pen touched the page of the Death Note, Higuchi felt a strange sensation come over him. He felt as though he were falling into a deep sleep and his body was now acting on its own.

Suddenly Higuchi forgot everything else, who he was, what he was doing there. He looked around in a daze, the words "kill all dark-haired men in blue and white" swimming in his head like a mantra that his body was determined to live, and die by. He focused on L, who was studying him closely. Higuchi gripped his gun behind him as if to hide it and walked briskly in L's direction.

"This is it!" Thought Light.

"No! Run!" Yelled Misa climbing out of the car and running toward Higuchi. L stood there, ignoring Misa, watching Higuchi approach him.

'_I don't understand his behavior, or what just happened. He didn't do anything except take out a notebook. Then suddenly his demeanor completely changed...' _Thought L with a frown. He saw Higuchi take his gun out from behind and point it at him. '_Why the sudden change? Is he going to try to shoot me even though he will be apprehended if he does? This doesn't make any sense.' _L slowly backed away from the mad man once he realized that Higuchi was completely out of it and determined to kill him. He noticed Misa running to stop Higuchi and it was then that he realized that it was too dangerous to continue any longer. He had no choice but to do it now, and put and end to his, even if it meant not being able to learn how Kira kills.

L ran his foot over the other as he often did, but this time the small gesture held significance. It was the sign that the rest of taskforce had been waiting for. Matsuda and Mogi emerged from behind the crates and opened fire on Higuchi, quickly followed by Aizawa and Ide. However, they were a second too late. Matsuda shot Higuchi's hand but only after Higuchi had already fired two shots at L.

Light stood back, watching carefully, as Higuchi was fired at repeatedly, his body convulsing with each shot. Misa ducked onto the floor to avoid being hit in the crossfire. She screamed until finally it was quiet. She heard a "thud" and saw that Higuchi had fallen over, a dead, bloody mess. She then looked beyond the fallen Kira and saw a completely separate pool of blood. Her eyes widened and she choked back a sob as she ran over to L who was on the floor on one knee, bleeding profusely from his side and shoulder, his white shirt, blood-soaked. Misa kneeled down in front of him and hugged him. L grunted from the pain of her pressing on his wounds.

"I'm sorry! This is my fault!" Cried out Misa, her voice breaking.

L held his shoulder with his good arm. "Misa, stop freaking out. It's not as bad as it looks" He said in a raspy whisper.

The rest of the taskforce members ran over to them, all except Light who walked slowly, in a defeated manner, as though his legs would give out any moment. Light looked distraught.

'He's alive...he's alive..._'_ He mumbled to himself with tears in his eyes. 'But he was supposed to die...my plan failed..._' _he said, falling to his knees.

Misa hugged L once again, more carefully this time to not aggravate his wounds. He relaxed a little in her embrace. She was thankful to be alive with him and she felt all the day's events finally hit her at once. She slumped while leaning into him.

"I'm so sorry..." She whimpered. She felt terrible and weak, as though something was finally giving up inside her.

"Misa?" He asked uncertainly. Her eyes fluttered closed and she was unresponsive. "Misa, look at me..." He told her.

But she didn't. The world going black and heavy, the voices of her beloved and the other taskforce members sounding far away. Her head felt like it weighted a ton and all she wanted to do was lay down for a while.

'_I love you ...' _She whispered to him deliriously as she passed out on him.

-_Some time later in the hospital- _

All of the taskforce members, including Watari, sat outside a plain white hallway in one of the hospital wings. It had been 12 hours since L, Misa, and Light had been taken to the hospital.

L was treated for his gun shot wounds upon arrival. The doctors removed the bullet from his shoulder, and saw that the other bullet had only grazed his side, causing a superficial wound. Aside from the aches and pains from his bandaged shoulder, L was just fine.

Light was also brought to the hospital after he collapsed on the dock unexpectedly. He seemed to have entered some sort of catatonic state, which everyone chalked up to the "strong impression" of having been so close to a shootout. After a couple of hours of rest, and a proper meal, Light was back to being his usual self, except a little more irate.

As for Misa, her state was more delicate. The doctors would not give them a straight answer as to what was wrong with her and they forbade them from entering her room. All they knew was that she had passed out after the whole Higuchi debacle, and with good reason. She had been through a lot in one day. However, the way the doctors ran test after test on her made it seem as though there were something more going on.

L sat in a chair next to Chief Yagami, sipping an orange juice box that one of the nurses had given him. He tried his best to not look worried, and was doing a better job at it than most of the taskforce members. On the inside, though, he was dying to know what was happening. He observed one of the doctors go in and out of Misa's room, each time wearing a different expression, making it difficult for him to conclude anything about the situation.

Finally a female doctor approached them holding a medical chart in her hands.

"Are you the family members of Miss Amane?" She inquired. The lot of them couldn't have looked more unrelated to Misa, but they all nodded their heads anyway.

"Well, I have good news. She's very fortunate that nothing worse happened, given her current condition." Said the doctor. They all gave her a puzzled look. "She's got some bruises, but she just needs plenty of rest, and no more emotional outbursts or anything like that. Some women are very sensitive to that, especially in the early stages." The doctor continued, glancing over the chart once more.

"...the early stages? Her condition?" Repeated L, trance-like. A fear was starting to form in the pit of his stomach and slowly creeping to other parts of him. The doctor looked at them with a frown and broke the news to them.

"Yeah, this woman is pregnant. Didn't you know? She almost miscarried." Said the doctor, raising an eyebrow. And with those words, L's fear spread from his gut, to grip his entire body. He was paralyzed, along with the rest of the taskforce members. The doctor looked at them oddly and walked away, realizing that she'd probably just violated a patient confidentiality clause.

They all sat there like statues until L's orange juice box fell from his hands and onto the floor. The raven-haired man didn't even notice as his mind was too preoccupied.

'_Misa...is pregnant...by me.' _He thought, feeling like he was going to be sick.

The first to break the silence was Matsuda. The young officer made unintelligible sounds while waving his hands around frantically. The rest of the men turned to look at him. Finally, he mustered the brain power to speak.

"WHAT?! MISA MISA IS..._pregnant?!_" He said in disbelief.

Chief Yagami sighed with disappointment as he looked at his son. Everyone except L, who was quietly having a meltdown, gave Light an accusative look. The brunette simply stared back, open mouthed, equally surprised by the news. Of course, he knew Misa's kid was not his. He snapped out of it and a murderous look replaced his surprised one. Chief Yagami turned to him and sighed.

"Light...I'm _very_ disappointed in you..." He said to his son. Light stood from his chair and faced all of them angrily.

"Don't look at me like that! I have nothing, _nothing, _to do with this. But I know who does." Said Light, menacingly. He looked pointedly at L. The rest of the team followed the brunette's gaze until they finally realized what Light was trying to tell them. Their mouths fell wide open once again as they realized that L was the father of Misa's child. They all ignored Watari's silent tears of joy.

'_I'm going to be a grandfather...' _Thought the old man, proudly.

L was frozen in place, staring at the ground where his juice box had spilled. He looked paler than ever. He stood up from his chair slowly and without looking at anyone, began to walk toward the exit.

"Oh Ryuzaki..." Said Light, effectively grabbing L's attention. Light's face looked absolutely livid with pent up rage and as soon as L turned to face him, Light threw his fist against L's face, sending the raven haired man flying into a wall.

* * *

**Writer's note: **_Yay so that's the end of the Higuchi debacle (finally, that took forever). Now time to introduce the Shinigami and the death notes. And of course, no L x Misa fic would be complete without L and Light trying to kill each other with their fists haha. More on that later. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this little two part chapter. I look forward to any input you guys have whether it's negative or positive!_


	14. Reverie

**Writer's Note:** _Hello! Thank you my lovely reviewers for your great comments! They really help me gauge if I'm going in a good direction with this story and with the writing. Anyways, I was inspired to write the next chapter so here it is! Hope you guys like it and please feel free to comment (whether good or bad)._

* * *

L went head first into the wall, the blow and pain from his shoulder rendering him dazed for a moment.

"That's for getting my girlfriend pregnant, you bastard" Said Light marching toward the detective. '_And also for surviving my plan...' _He thought.

L recovered and stood up. As he did, Light punched him once again, only this time L was more prepared and only fell back slightly. The rest of the KIT members were gaping at the scene while nurses and other hospital staff looked on, horrified.

"I understand that I probably deserved that first punch, however, I owe you for that second one" Said L seriously. He dodged a third punch from Light, turned back and round-house kicked Light across the face. This time, it was the brunette who went flying into the opposing wall.

Someone screamed as the two men lunged for each other.

"We have to stop them!" Yelled Chief Yagami. Aizawa and Mogi looked at each other and nodded as if to say "you take one, and I'll take the other." Before they could do serious damage to themselves, Aizawa grabbed L while Mogi took care of Light.

"Gentlemen! Please control yourselves, this is a hospital, not a bar!" Yelled one of the doctors that was passing by. Aizawa and Mogi let go of L and Light and quickly apologized to the doctor. Light and L said nothing but merely looked at each other with contempt before walking away in separate directions.

'_I promise you L, this isn't over yet...' _Thought Light angrily.

"Ryuzaki, where are you going? Aren't you going to see Misa?" Asked Aizawa as L reached the exit staircase. The detective stopped in his tracks for a moment.

"There's something I have to do. Watari, I'm taking the car. You stay here and take care of Misa for me. Thanks" He said as he walked out.

"Is he seriously thinking of driving with that bad shoulder?" Asked Aizawa, actually showing concern for L.

"...Does Ryuzaki even know how to drive?!" Asked Matsuda. The rest of the KIT members looked at him disapprovingly, not answering his irrelevant question.

"Yes, Mr. Matsuda, L knows how to drive" Answered Watari politely.

"...wait if he can drive, how come you're always driving him around to places?" Matsuda asked Watari.

"Matsuda stop asking dumb questions. L doesn't drive because he doesn't carry any photo identification or license on him." Answered Light, as he sat back down with his arms crossed. He didn't have the patience for Matsuda's stupidity today.

"Precisely..." Said Watari, smiling. With that, they all fell silent, wondering what was so important that L would leave Misa's side.

...

Meanwhile, inside the hospital room across the hall, a certain young, blonde woman was becoming conscious after the commotion outside woke her. Misa opened her eyes to find herself in a dimly lit room with white walls, a tv set, and a sofa-chair. She felt something by her feet and when she looked up, she saw a male nurse smiling at her as he placed some blankets at the foot of her bed.

"Good morning" He told her.

Misa returned his smile and tried to sit up. That's when she realized that she felt as though she'd just been hit by a bus. Her neck hurt and and her body ached all over. She took a moment to think back on everything that had happened and that's when she recalled the events of the day before: Higuchi trying to rape her, Hatori's death, and worst of all, L being shot. At that last recollection, she shot up from her bed, ignoring her body's protests.

"I'm sorry, I have to ask you something! Was someone else admitted alongside me? He's about a foot taller than I am, with dark hair, handsome but on the pale side and has dark eyes! He was shot and I really need to know if he's ok!" She said anxiously.

The nurse looked concerned and walked over to adjust the pillows behind her so they would support her back.

"You mean Hideki Ryuga?" Said the nurse, gently pressing down on her shoulder, forcing her to lean back on the pillows. Misa looked confused for a second until she remembered that Hideki Ryuga was L's public alias.

"Right! Him!" She said.

"Ah...the fellow with the sweet tooth." Said the nurse smiling. "He's fine. We treated him hours ago. He had a bullet lodged in his shoulder but we removed that without any complications. Other than that, he had a few minor scrapes. He's technically been discharged but he refused to leave until you were discharged as well." He said, reassuring her.

Misa felt as though a ton of bricks had been lifted from her. Words could not explain how relieved she was to hear that her sweet panda was doing well. Misa sat up abruptly again, startling the nurse.

"I have to see him! Is he outside?" She asked eagerly.

"You shouldn't exert yourself like this for a while. It's bad for the baby" He told her, forcing her to lean back once more. Misa looked at the man as though he had three heads.

"Um...what? What baby?" She asked, perplexed.

The nurse gave her an amused look and then chuckled.

"You remind me of my sister. She didn't know she was pregnant either until it was almost time to give birth!" Said the nurse with a twinkle in his eyes. Misa's face slowly changed into an expression of pure terror as she stared at the nurse like a deer in headlights.

"Well, you're nowhere near close to giving birth yet! You're only a few weeks along. Congratulations!" Said the nurse.

Once the news fully hit her, Misa let out an ear-piercing scream that caused the nurse to jump back, startled, and several other nurses to run into her room.

-_At taskforce Headquarters- _

L wasted no time in taking the elevator up to Misa's room. On the way up, he reflected on the alarming situation. He was certain that Misa was on birth control pills as he'd seen her take them before.

'_That begs the question, of: Did she do this on purpose?' _Thought L. Before he faced her, he needed to know the answer to that question. The tone of his conversation with her depended on whether it was an accidental pregnancy or her having purposely stopped taking the pills to achieve this. Deep down he knew that Misa would never do something like that, but there was only one way to be sure.

The detective walked into Misa's apartment and went straight to her room. He began to rummage through her drawers, where he knew she kept the small pack of pills. He found what he was looking for and with it, the answer to his question. All of the pills were missing, except for one. One small, forgotten pill. He counted the days since the missed pill and if memory served him right, that was the night he laid with Misa for the first time. It wasn't unlike Misa to forget things so it all made sense to him. She forgot to take that pill and didn't think anything of it since it's not like they planned the events of that night.

'_So she's been pregnant for a month...' _He thought morosely as he held the pack of pills in his hand. He sighed and sat normally on the bed, staring at the single tiny pill in its case, imaging the small life form that was now developing inside of Misa. L was petrified at the thought of being a father to that small life form. He put the pill case down and cradled his head in his hands, wishing that this had never happened.

'_This is bad...I__ can't be a father. If I had known that she'd forgotten her pill I never would have-...'_ He trailed off as his phone rang. It was Watari.

"Yes?" Answered L, sounding as normal as possible.

"Ryuzaki, Miss Amane is awake. The doctors are discharging her and so far it looks like they're both doing splendid" Said Watari, referring to Misa and their child. L felt relieved for a moment, but then the knot of fear in his stomach took hold of him once again.

"Does she know?" Asked L.

"Yes, she does" Answered Watari.

"Good. Thank you for informing me, Watari. I will not be returning to the hospital so please have one of the taskforce members bring you and Misa back to Headquarters." Said L calmly. He wasn't ready to face everyone yet, especially not Misa. Not only that but he needed to clear his head of all these emotions he was experiencing. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to dive right back to work on the Kira investigation. He'll deal with the rest later.

-_Back at the hospital-_

Misa would not stop talking. After getting over the initial shock of finding out that she was pregnant, Misa became obsessed with every detail of her pregnancy. The whole time it took to check out of the hospital, she talked nonstop about all the things she would have to do for her child.

"I'm going to have to contact my publicist, and tell her this can't get out to the media. I'm going to have to hire a doppelganger to take my place in public. This can't get out to the media. I'm going to have to go on an extended vacation where no one will recognize me. This can't get out to the media..." She said, listing each item on her to-do list one by one.

"Wow, Misa, don't you think you're over-thinking this?" Asked Matsuda.

"No, Matsu, you don't understand! This CAN'T get out to the media so I have to be careful! I will NOT have my child making headlines" She said, glaring at Matsuda.

"It just...seems like a lot to think about" He said carefully, shrinking away from her. The last thing he wanted to do was get on Misa's bad side.

"It is, but that's ok. I'm like in love with this baby already!" She declared, hugging her flat stomach.

Misa didn't even try to hide the fact that L was the father, since she figured everyone would find out eventually. Luckily, Mr. Yagami and Light left before Misa woke. The last thing she wanted was a confrontation with Light, especially since the doctors told her she needed to be at peace for a few days. The remaining KIT members all looked at her, amazed by how well she was taking things. Then as they exited the hospital, the mother-to-be stopped in her tracks.

"Where is L? Shouldn't he be here?" She asked, frowning. The others looked at each other uneasily. They neither knew where he was, nor how well he was taking the news of his impending fatherhood. Lucky for them, Watari stepped in.

"L is waiting for us at headquarters. He had some business to take care of" Explained Watari.

"Oh ok. He knows, right?" She asked.

"Yes he does" Said Watari, smiling.

"And is he excited?!" Asked Misa, hopeful.

"You'll have to ask him yourself Miss Amane" Said Watari, with a twinkle in his eyes.

"You can just call me Misa, Watari. We're almost like family now!" She told him, smiling brightly.

In that moment, Watari had to fight hard not to shed tears of joy. He never imagined that something like this would happen to his adoptive son. It had always been a secret wish of his for L to find someone to be happy with and start a family. He was excited when L started going out with Naomi Misora. Alas, that didn't end well, and Watari had almost given up on ever seeing L happy. Until now. Misa was a lovely woman, full of life and joy, and even though she was involved in the Kira case, she could save his adoptive son from himself. The old man beamed at her.

"I suppose we are, Misa!" He said happily. The two boarded Aizawa's car and they departed from the hospital.

-_At headquarters-_

L sat in his usual spot in the main investigation room. He was deep in thought as he went through all of Higuchi's property that was recovered at the crime scene. In particular, he was most intrigued by the black notebook that Higuchi took out before going mad. L opened the notebook and read what was written on the inside cover.

"Deathnote...the human whose name is written in this notebook shall die" He read out loud, holding the notebook delicately between his forefingers and thumbs. "How curious" He said.

L inspected the notebook carefully, not noticing the white, bony Shinigami standing behind him, quietly looking over his shoulder. Rem could easily make her presence known, but she wanted to observe this human some more. She knew he was the one who saved Misa from Higuchi. She was curious to see if he was the reason that her beloved Misa was so happy.

_"If this thing works, then it would explain how Kira is able to kill. But that's ridiculous. Am I supposed to believe that this notebook kills people?"_ Thought L, skeptically. '_Well, I suppose that it can't hurt to try...but who would I kill?' _

Rem looked on as L lifted a pencil and held it tentatively over a page of the notebook. Something told her that if L tested the Deathnote, this whole investigation would be turned on its head. Not only that, but if L happened to kill Light Yagami, then he would become the new owner of the Deathnote, and it would fall on her to write his name down in her notebook when it was his time to die.

'_Before he uses it, p__erhaps I should tell him that a human who uses the Deathnote can go to neither heaven nor hell' _She considered silently.

L stared silently at the page of the suspicious notebook. He made up his mind, pictured the face of the person he wanted to try the notebook on and went for it.

_"Here goes"_ Thought L as he got ready to write down the name. However, before his pencil touched the paper, he heard a sound behind him. Just as the detective turned around, Rem, disappeared. L caught a brief glimpse of the Shinigami's white shadow. The detective shut his eyes tightly and then opened them again, believing that his eyes must have played a trick on him. Upon seeing nothing behind him, he turned back to the notebook, except this time he was interrupted by the sound of the door being opened.

"WE'RE HERE!" Announced Misa as she ran into the investigation room, making a beeline for L. He felt a familiar pair of slender arms wrap firmly around his torso from behind. L grunted in pain as Misa unknowingly pressed on his shoulder wound.

"Misa, you're hurting my shoulder" He said in a strained tone.

"Oh sorry!" Said Misa sheepishly as she released L. He turned his chair around to face her and as soon as he did, Misa brought her lips down to meet his in a passionate kiss. L let himself enjoy the kiss for a moment before he heard someone clear their throat loudly, reminding them that they were not alone. He broke the kiss to find the KIT members standing behind Misa, staring at them with disbelief.

"I still can't believe those two...actually _like _each other..." Said Matsuda, in awe. The rest were thinking along the same lines. It was going to take some time for them to get used to seeing the two together. Misa giggled and sat on L's lap, facing the others.

"Oh it's _more _than just a crush Matsu. I'm convinced wholeheartedly that my feelings for Light are no more! The one who I truly love and will forever be faithful to is none other than L!" She said, giving her boyfriend a bright smile. L groaned inwardly at Misa's declaration of love. The others just looked at her, amazed. Even Rem who was nearby and heard everything was impressed.

"And now that we're going to be parents together, things will be even better! Won't they?" She asked, turning to L. The detective simply gave her a blank stare, a flurry of mixed emotions battling inside him. Misa's face fell a little at his loss for words. However, her smile quickly returned.

"It's alright, you're probably still shocked by the news. I know I was!" She said, laughing, and placing a kiss on his cheek.

L simply sat there, not saying anything. He couldn't just tell her flat out that he didn't want to be a father. Or rather that he _couldn't. _At least not in front of the other taskforce members. Lucky for him, Misa decided to take her leave then. She got up from his lap and announced that she was going upstairs to rest. Before she left, however, she leaned down and whispered something into L's ear that made the detective shift in his chair and blush slightly. Having obtained the desired effect, Misa smiled and cheerfully made her way to the door of the main investigation room.

"I'll be waiting for you tonight..." She said suggestively to L before walking out. Everyone simply stared at L, who turned around swiftly so as to hide his embarrassment.

"I think you should all take the day off. Thank you for all your hard work, I'm very pleased with the results" Said L, typing away at his keyboard. All the KIT members except for Watari, smiled at each other and gathered their things. They said their goodbyes and exited the building, leaving L and the old man in the room.

L noticed that Watari was still standing there, observing him.

"Is something the matter, Watari?" Asked L carelessly.

Watari hesitated for a moment. There was so much that he wanted to say to his adoptive son, he didn't even know where to begin. He sensed that L was not as enthusiastic about the current situation as Misa was. He had something to say about it, but in the end he thought it best to save it for a later time.

"Nothing, Ryuzaki. Is there something that you require of me?" Asked the old man.

"Not right now. Thank you" Said L, going back to his work.

Meanwhile, the Shinigami followed in the direction that Misa went. Even though she could not yet see the god of death watching over her, Rem still wanted to be there by her side.


	15. Decay

**Writer's Note: **_Hello readers! I am back with another chapter. Hopefully you guys won't kill me with this one haha. As always, thank you to my lovely reviewers. I love you all and I read all your comments, and they make me feel all fuzzy inside. Thanks and I can't wait to read what you guys think!_

* * *

Misa paced in and out of the rooms of her apartment, singing to herself and moving furniture around. She brimmed with happiness as she periodically ran into her kitchen to check up on something. Her apartment kitchen was stuffed with food she 'borrowed' from the main kitchen at headquarter and her oven had been going nonstop all day. '_Great! Everything is going, now I just have to make sure I don't burn anything!' _She had special plans with L tonight to celebrate their little "bundle of joy."

'_L I'm going to give you the best night of your life' _She thought with excitement as she hummed her favorite tune and went about her business.

Misa's activities did not go unnoticed in the main investigation room, where L watched her curiously through the cameras. He bit his thumb as he looked at his girlfriend move from room to room, doing god only knows what. He tried to focus on his work, but every so often, her motions peeked his interest.

"I need to tell her that this is isn't going to work" He muttered. He hated having to break her happiness but he didn't want to be a father. Out of all the things he thought he'd achieve in life, fatherhood was not among them. He didn't know the first thing about raising children, and even if he did, he didn't have the time for a child. He was L, the world-famous detective. He lived life on his own terms, constantly on the move, seeking the next challenge, fighting for justice. He was not father material.

He sighed, knowing that if he was going to break the news to her, it had to be soon. '_I'll do it tonight' _He thought, forcing himself to turn back to his work.

-_later that night-_

L walked into Misa's apartment, ready to break the news to her. As soon as he walked in, however, he knew that this night would not go as he planned. The lights were off and all over the apartment there were lit candles, giving the place a lovely, ethereal glow. As he stepped further into the apartment, he noticed the furniture was arranged differently as well to make more space in the middle of the room.

"Why do I feel like I'm walking into a trap?" He said to himself. Before he could turn around to shut the door, he felt someone sneak up behind him and slip a blindfold over his eyes. It could only be Misa.

"Misa, what are you doing?" Asked L as she tied the blindfold behind his head. She leaned in close to him, her body grazing his and whispered into his ear, "You'll see..."

L felt a shiver down his spine at her suggestive tone, his curiosity winning over. Misa smiled coyly and took the blindfolded L by the hand as she led him to sit normally on the couch. L let himself be pushed down onto the soft furniture. A voice on the back of his head was frantically yelling at him to snap out of this wonderment before it was too late, that he'd come here for a specific reason and he needed to get to it. She kissed him on the lips and then kneeled on the floor in front of him.

"Ok. You may remove your blindfold!" She announced.

L did as she instructed and was immediately impressed. He looked around and saw that in the center of the room, Misa had laid out several layers of blankets on the floor, creating a makeshift bed. Throughout the rest of the room and around the improvised bedding, she had placed bowls, platters, and glasses containing all sorts of sweets, pastries and fruits. There was a chocolate fountain, a bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries, cheesecake with marmalade, bonbons of every kind, a wide variety of frosting and mousses, tarts, edible arrangements, as well as sweets that he didn't even recognize. The dim candle lighting made the place look like some sort of palace full of his favorite things.

Then there was Misa, of course. She was dressed in nothing but satin midnight blue panties and a revealing bra that threatened to spill her perfect boobs for his viewing pleasure. What more could L want? At that moment he really did feel like the luckiest man on earth. He had all the sweets he could ask for, and the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on, all before him.

He sat there speechless for a minute, taking everything in and secretly wanting to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"How...how did you do all of this in just one day?" He asked, in awe. Misa was flattered by his amazement.

"I have my ways..." She told him playfully. She parted his legs and raised herself up between them to kiss him. L tore his eyes off the things in the room and kissed her eagerly.

"There's also something I've never done that I want to try with you" She whispered. L looked at her and caressed her cheek.

"What is it?" He asked, his curiosity once again trumping his judgement. At this rate, he would never tell her what he came here to tell her, though, he didn't mind that as much as he should have. His logic was quickly being trumped by his lustful urges. Misa blushed noticeably at his question.

"You'll see" She said.

She kissed him fully on the lips, and L reciprocated hungrily, their tongues entwining sensually over one another. L felt his heart quicken as Misa moved her hands over his arousal, causing him to moan into her mouth.

They continued to kiss as she undid his jean button. L sighed his encouragement as Misa fished inside his pants for his erection, pulling it free from its confines with long firm caresses. She hesitated for a moment and L looked at her with lustful eyes before taking her lips with his own.

With renewed confidence, she abandoned L's lips and instead encircled L's shaft with a gentle suckle.

"M-Misa" L whispered as she swirled her tongue around his member.

"You don't like it?" She asked, worried.

"No! I do like it" He corrected quickly. "It feels amazing" He said looking down at her perfect form. She smiled and kissed him lightly before getting back to pleasing him with her mouth. She was happy he was enjoying it, and although she would never admit it, she had been thinking about pleasing him this way for days. She just had to work up the courage to do it. Her suckling on his member was timid at first. However she grew bolder with her actions until she finally took him fully into her mouth, loving the sounds he was making to express his pleasure.

L let his head fall back in ecstasy under Misa's administrations, thoughts of his original intent for tonight long suppressed. He instinctively put his hand in her hair as she worked her hot mouth over his length.

"...Misa" He said delirious. What she was doing to him with her mouth felt incredible. He caressed her head as a small gesture of appreciation. As he did this, L could not help think that for it being Misa's first time doing this, she was a goddess at it already.

-_Meanwhile, elsewhere-_

Light was laying in bed, naked, next to a very flushed and exhausted Kiyomi. He looked at her, admiring his handy work before laying down on his back and staring up at the ceiling, thinking.

"Mmm, Light. I love you" She said as she curled up next to him. She stared up at him adoringly, awaiting a response.

"I love you too, Kiyomi." He said blandly, not really meaning it. His mind was more preoccupied with a petite blonde that now carried L's kid inside her. The thought bothered him to no end, causing him to frown as he mulled over his current predicament.

'_How could I have lost this badly to L?! I must be an idiot to not have paid closer attention to Misa. I suspected there was something going on between them, but I never imagined that they were screwing each other.'_ He thought. '_This complicates things...although...there may yet be a way. L's little runt may prove useful for what I'm thinking.'_

A sinister plan was forming in Light's head and a smile graced his lips as a result. Kiyomi noticed this and looked at her lover with curiosity.

"Light, what's so funny?" She asked. Light turned his eyes toward her.

"Kiyomi, did you know that Misa is pregnant?" He asked her bluntly. Kiyomi gasped and sat up on the bed. She looked at Light with wide eyes and mouth open, afraid to ask what was on her mind. Light looked at her, annoyed, knowing exactly what she was thinking.

"Relax, it's not mine. Apparently it's L's" He said, answering her question. Kiyomi visibly relaxed but then threw an accusative glance at Light.

"Is that the reason why you've been coming to me every night this week? To forget about that little harlot?" She asked, holding the blanket up to cover her.

"Of course not." Said Light, deflecting her argument. "I had to admit that at first I was shocked. I still am as a matter of fact. However, the more I think about it, the more comfortable I am with the idea. This could be a good thing that I could turn into an advantage for us" He said, giving her a smile. He sat up on the bed and kissed her lightly on the lips. When she seemed to relax completely, he encircled her in his arms and brought her back down onto the bed.

"What are you thinking about doing?" She asked him, settling her head on his chest.

"Well...first I have to wait a few days until things calm down at Taskforce. Then I'm going to stick to my original plan of returning Misa's memories. Once that's done, I'm going to use her bastard as an excuse to bring her back to my side. After all, what mother doesn't want to save her unborn child's life? Especially when the father is out to put her on death row?" He asked.

"You really think L will put Misa on death row if he found out she's the second Kira? Even if she's pregnant?"

"It doesn't matter if L would or not. All that matters is what Misa _thinks _L would do to her and the baby should he learn her secret" Said Light, smiling. His eyes were shining with malicious intent. Kiyomi looked up at him with adoring eyes. She moved in to kiss him once again, and Light welcomed her into his arms as the two entwined themselves once more.

-_The next evening-_

L's plan to speak to Misa was foiled yet again. When he went up to see her in the late afternoon, he found her dressed up to go out. She was wearing boots, a fitted black tank top, a black ruffled skirt with a few studded belts, and a jean jacket.

"Are you going somewhere?" Asked L, eyeing her from head to toe, biting his thumb. Misa reveled in the look he gave her.

"I have a date" She said, beguiling him. L was not amused to hear this.

"...Misa, seriously. Where are you going?"

She enjoyed the hint of jealousy in his tone. "I'm going on a date with the cutest detective ever" She said smiling at him. When L did not react, she pouted in feigned annoyance. "Ugh! Men...We're going out! Don't you remember you promised me last night that we would go to the park and ride again, only this time it would be a proper date?" L racked his brain trying to remember when he said this.

"...I don't recall ever saying that" He told her honestly. Then again, he was not thinking at all last night, so it was very possible that she had asked him. After the things she did for him, he would have agreed to go to the end of the world for her.

"Well...WHATEVER. We're leaving now, and it's gonna be great and you're gonna like it!" She said, taking him by the hand and dragging him out of the apartment. L reluctantly followed behind her as she dragged him down the stairs.

"Alright, but I have to talk to you about-"

"You can talk to me on the way there! We have to hurry if we want to get on the Ferris Wheel in time for the sunset. It'll be SO romantic!" She boasted as they walked out past the main investigation room.

On the ride there, L was quiet as Misa ranted on about this and that. He looked at her in silence, mesmerized by her cheerful tone, and the small things that she found amusing. Half the time she talked about movies and famous actors and things that L didn't know much about, but all the same, he listened and found himself unable to ignore her. Again, that voice in the back of his head was telling him to wake up and get serious. But it was hard, he was feeling very strange today. Something was bothering him, especially after last night. It was as if he really needed to tell her something more than just his issues with fatherhood.

Once there, the two walked the park holding hands, taking in all the sights and smells. There were a lot of rides and concession stands and games at the park, but the two were not in any rush, simply walking with each other was enough. Misa leaned her head against his arm and L noticed the envious looks other males threw him at seeing who he was with. He simply ignored them, and went on about their date in peace. He would not allow a bunch of covetous pricks to ruin a date with the woman he loved. At that thought, L stopped short on his tracks. Misa noticed this and turned to look at him.

"Hey, are you alright? You've been really...pensive today. I mean, you're always like that, but today more than usual" She said with concern. L simply gave her a blank stare, lost in his realization.

'_I...love her?' _He thought, looking at her pretty face that was now frowning at him. He didn't need to answer his question, as the quickened beating of his heart and the fluttering feeling in his stomach answered for him. '_This is bad...' _He was in love with Misa.

"HELLO? Is anyone in there?!" She asked, lightly knocking on L's forehead, bringing him out of his trance. "What's the matter with you?" She asked. L's eyes met hers and her heart skipped a beat. They stood there looking at each other until finally L moved in and kissed her gently on the lips. They stood mouth to mouth, as though the rest of the world didn't exist. Then just like that, he stepped away from the kiss and kept walking, his hand still holding hers. Misa gave him a puzzled look.

"It's almost sunset. We'd better get to that Ferris Wheel" He told her. She smiled, sighed, and walked beside him. They made it to the Ferris Wheel just in time to admire the sun's last glow as it disappeared over the horizon. They were toward the top of the Ferris Wheel and they could see the entire city, as far as their eyes could see, bathed in the sun's evening light. It was absolutely breathtaking. Misa had her fingers interlocked with L's as they sat looking into the distance. She sighed, trying to remember the last time that she was this happy.

"It's so beautiful." She whispered in awe. "This moment is perfect."

L said nothing. A gentle breeze blew by and she closed her eyes as it whisked her bangs off her forehead gently. It was then that she noticed L's grip on her hand tightened just a bit, and he seemed somewhat tense. She turned to him, intrigued. L did not turn to face her as he continued to look out at the sun's last gleams.

"I think I'm in love with you" He said, not looking at her.

Misa's breath caught in her throat and she swore her heart did a somersault. He'd told her he loved her! She was officially the happiest woman on earth! Misa smiled and turned his head toward her. He locked eyes with her and she pressed her forehead against his.

"And I love you as well" She said, closing the gap between them in a kiss. Right then, the sun went down, casting a perfect silhouette of the two lovers kissing atop the Ferris Wheel. They stayed that way for some time, just kissing and smiling at each other, their lips barely touching. L felt as though he'd gotten a huge load off his chest. He supposed that was something that had been weighting on his conscience and had surfaced just now. Either way, he was glad he'd told her.

The two stayed for a while longer after that, holding each other as they walked from ride to ride, chatting and whispering sweet things into each other's ears. Any passerby may have mistook them for blissful newlyweds.

The ride back from the park and ride was comfortably silent as the couple cuddled in the back seat. Their sudden closeness did not go unnoticed by Watari, who was overjoyed at seeing them that way. They arrived back at headquarters and just before Misa took off for the stairs, L tugged her hand.

"I'm coming with you. I have to talk to you." He said seriously. Despite the awesome date they'd just had, L was done stalling. He had to tell her.

"...Okay." She said a little worried. Something told her this wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. They climbed the stairs in silence, feeling more and more uneasy with each step. L only hoped that she would see things his way and understand where he was coming from. He didn't want to ruin what they had. The couple entered her apartment, and she sat on the couch. L remained standing, looking down at the floor.

"Well? What's up?" She asked. L shuffled his feet a little and just got straight to the point.

"Misa, I know you're excited about this child, but I don't see myself being a good father. This is neither a good time nor a good situation for either of us to bring a child into this world." He said plainly. His words fell on Misa like a bucket of ice water. She sat there, trying to digest his words, her hand instinctively moving to her womb protectively.

"...What?" She asked weakly. There was a long silence. He raised his gaze to meet hers. She was afraid of what he would say to her next question, but she had to know. "Are you saying you don't want our baby?" Tears were threatening to spill from her eyes but she did not divert her gaze from his. L thought about her question. Truthfully, he didn't know what he felt for his child. Right now, 'his child' was a completely foreign concept to him, a _thing _he'd never imagined, something or someone he's never met, let alone love. It wasn't a person that he could feel anything for, at least not yet.

"I don't know if I want it or not, but I do know that this is not a good idea. Think about it." He told her. Her heart dropped and she lashed out at him.

"No! There's nothing to think about! This is a terrible idea, I know. I'm the queen of terrible ideas. But that doesn't matter, L! This baby is real and we _have _to make it work! We have to!"

"No you don't. There are other alternatives" He said, hoping she would catch his drift. She paused for a second, blinked back her tears, and then looked at him dead serious.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" She asked, trying to keep her composure.

"For once, _think _Misa. This isn't some doll or a pet that can be easily be dealt with, we're both ill-equipped to care for a child. Consider the interests of that life form-"

"So you have cold feet about being a father and you want me to kill our baby?! I love you, but... I won't do that! I don't want to!" She said, shaking her head vigorously. So much for her seeing things his way. "I want this, L...I love our baby..._please_ understand." She pleaded, her hand hovering over her flat stomach.

A tense silence filled the room, each waiting for the other to yield. She looked at him standing there, thin lines furrowing his brow as he battled with himself on what to say next.

"Please, love..." She begged him with tears in her eyes.

L sighed. "Fine. If you want to have it, then have it. I'll see to it that you're both taken care of financially. He or she will not be lacking anything."

"Anything except a father...right?" She said, anguished.

"Misa, please understand, I can't jeopardize everything for this careless mistake."

That was the wrong thing to say as she covered her mouth and choked back a sob.

"Mistake? A mistake?! That's what you're calling our baby? You...you monster... how could you say that about something that's a piece of both of us?!"

L looked at her with tight lips, unwilling to continue this anymore. He walked out without saying another word. Clearly Misa and him had reached an impasse and neither was willing to compromise so there was no use in him wasting his breath.

'_I won't go through this. This is exactly the reason why I chose to end things with Naomi. I never wanted this. I'm going to have to put an end to this, one way or another.' _He thought resolutely as he walked toward the elevator. The idea of ending his relationship with Misa hurt him more than he cared to admit, but he saw no other way to make her see reason. He couldn't force her to abort the pregnancy per se, but he could perhaps do something to make her reject the idea of having a child with him...

Misa sat on the couch, still looking at where L had been standing moments before. She covered her mouth with her hand, choking back sobs, and with the other she caressed her stomach comfortingly. She curled up on the couch and tried to calm down, remembering the doctor's orders to not to over-stress herself. She took a few deep breaths and decided to try to sleep. It was hard to fall asleep after that discussion but after about half an hour of crying, sleep finally claimed her.

Meanwhile, L was perched on his chair, tense. He was trying to focus on his work but he was finding it extremely difficult.

'_I hope I don't regret this...' _He thought as he typed furiously on his keyboard. He'd set a plan in motion but he was already starting to doubt it.

_-a couple of hours later- _

Misa awoke from her light slumber. Her eyes were sad and her face was still puffy from crying. She decided that she needed to talk to L, more calmly this time. She wanted to tell him that she understood his insecurity but that he should give it a try. Things had gotten a little out of control during that conversation and they probably weren't thinking properly. This was something that they definitely had to discuss with cool heads, and a lot of calm. She got up from her bed and went to the bathroom to freshen up before going to see him.

L noticed from the cameras that Misa was awake. If his prediction was correct, she would come down to talk to him any minute now. He looked at the time and just as he was about to call his guest, she arrived. Weddy walked into the main investigation room, a suitcase in hand.

"L I'm here. I removed all the wiretaps and cameras from Yotsuba Corp, just like you asked. Here they are" She said, placing the suitcase on his desk.

"Thank you for your troubles" He said. Just as he predicted, Misa was now leaving her apartment and descending the stairs. He was feeling sick to his stomach for what he was about to do, but there was no other way.

"Weddy, I have a special favor to ask you." He said, eyeing the cameras. The blonde woman arched an eyebrow as she studied the detective cautiously. She followed his gaze to the cameras and saw that Misa was coming down from her floor. She looked back at L with an arched brow.

"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Asked Weddy. L nodded solemnly. Without any more explanation she understood the message, and what he needed from her.

"Ah, alright, but you lead" She demanded. '_This should be interesting' _She thought.

L nodded and stood from his chair. He took a step toward her and stood to his full height, as Weddy was much taller than Misa. He glanced back at the cameras to gauge Misa's distance from the main investigation room. '_Any second now she will be here' _He thought. Without another word, he took Weddy by the waist and kissed her as passionately as he could under the circumstances. With feigned emotions, Weddy reciprocated willingly. She wove her arms around L's torso, snaking her hand into his pitch black hair and moaned into his mouth as he kissed her. As L deepened the kiss, he pressed Weddy closer to him and then stepped forward to pin her against his desk. Weddy wrapped a leg around L's waist as he let his hands roam freely over Weddy's curvaceous body. Weddy in turn arched her back and clung onto L's torso like a leech.

A minute later, L heard a "thump" and tumbling sound by the stairs. He opened his eyes and looked toward the stairs as Weddy assaulted his neck with kisses. His gray eyes met a pair of shocked and hurt hazel ones. Misa looked on horrified at them from the foot of the stairs. L looked back at her for a second before taking a deep breath and forcing himself to turn back to kiss Weddy once again. He heard Misa's footsteps as she ran up the stairs and just as he was about to step away from Weddy, he heard someone clear their throat loudly, announcing their presence. Both L and Weddy's heads snapped in the direction of the intruder. It was Watari.

"Ryuzaki! L! I'd like to have a word with you." Said the old man sternly. Watari's intrusion and commanding tone surprised them both. L released his hold on Weddy and she reluctantly did the same to him. She sighed and fixed herself up. Before leaving, Weddy stepped close to L and whispered in his ear.

"If you'd like to continue what we started here, you know how to find me" She said suggestively, and then she took her leave. L stood there, with his hands in his pockets and his eyes trained on the floor, hating himself for what he'd just done.

Misa limped up the stairs as fast as she could up to her apartment. She was trying to control her sobbing but she was still hyperventilating from the shock.

"What the fuck was that? What was _that?!" _She asked herself over and over again.

The last thing she had expected to find moments ago was the man she loved in another woman's arms. She was so shocked that she missed one of the steps and tumbled down the rest of the way, spraining her ankle. She could not believe what her eyes were seeing. Misa felt sick to her stomach at the memory of those two pawing each other.

"Oh god, they're probably still down there...doing more" She said out loud, her voice breaking. She covered her mouth as she got a strong urge to puke her guts out. She ran to the bathroom and collapsed in front of the toilet just in time to throw up her lunch.

"No no no...this is wrong" She sobbed. "I'm so confused...why? Why? why?" She asked herself, doubled over on her bathroom floor.

She stayed like that for a long while, kneeling on the bathroom floor like a crumpled mess. So much for not stressing herself. Her doctors would be extremely disappointed if they saw her in the state she was in. Misa tried to compose herself but she could not get the image of L with Weddy out of her head. She kept replaying the way he'd looked at her with those gray, unreadable eyes and how he had the nerve to turn back to kiss that bimbo even after he'd already seen her standing there. At the memory, Misa wailed once more. She sat up on the floor and leaned her head on the toilet, crying. She started to sob uncontrollably and before she knew it, she was having a mini panic attack. Her breaths became uneven and rugged as the tears rained over her cheeks. She tried to calm down, but she was so freaked out, she couldn't do it. Everything started going black and before long, she was engulfed in darkness as she passed out on her bathroom floor.


	16. Breakdown

**Writer's Note: **_Yeah I know last chapter was a little intense. Well, hold on to your hats cause this ride isn't over yet =] there's a lot of dialogue in this one, just fyi. Again, I hope you guys don't hate me after this lol. I swear it'll get better! *goes to hide in a corner* _

* * *

Watari stood before L with a disapproving look on his face. It wasn't L's intention for Watari to find him like that with Weddy, but alas, there he was. The two men stood in tense silence until Watari spoke.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Asked Watari with a grave expression. L continued to look down at the floor. He didn't want his mentor to see the shame in his eyes. "Misa is a beautiful woman who adores you. Not only that but she's carrying your child!" Said the old man. He was trying to be patient with L, but this was unforgivable. This time he would not stand by idly as he watched L destroy every bit of happiness that he'd managed to find.

"Watari, you don't understand." Said L.

"Please, elaborate. Help me understand." Responded Watari, unmoved.

"She wants to force me into being a father to that child. She needs to understand that she can't guilt trip me into doing this. I am not doing it."

"Why is being a father so bad?" Asked the old man.

"It's bad because it's ludicrous. I'm in the midst of the most dangerous case yet and she's planning to a baby? Where's the logic in that?"

"It's not ludicrous. You're just afraid of being a father and that's normal, it's okay to feel that way, but what is not alright is what you just did to that poor woman." Said Watari.

"It's not fear that's holding me back, it's the fact that I can't incorporate a child into my life because I don't want it and even if I did, I don't know anything about providing a normal childhood to a baby-"

"That's where Misa can help you. She's there for you and you can do it together." He insisted.

"I'm sorry. I can't."

"No, you won't. There's a difference." Retorted the old man. "You have this notion that having a family means you have to give up who you are and what you do. It was the same way with Ms. Misora, and look what you did there. You can make it work, especially with Misa by your side." Watari reasoned.

"She's the Second Kira. I know it." Said L.

"And? I believe I just saw you philandering with a criminal of equal caliber. You and I both know that Weddy is no saint."

"That's different and you know it."

"Listen to yourself! Is it really that difficult for you to just be happy? Must you sabotage every good relationship you have?" Demanded Watari, getting emotional. L did not respond. He merely turned around and sat back in his chair as usual. He didn't want to talk anymore, but Watari wasn' t done yet.

"I'm going to tell you something very important my boy, so listen well. You see me today and what I am, and all I've accomplished. All of it...and I mean _all_ of it, I would gladly trade for an opportunity to go back to my youth and cease the opportunity that you now carelessly hold. I had that chance once, and like you, I threw it because I thought other things were more important. I've done great things, yes, but at the end of the day, I'm alone and will be until the day I die. Think about that." He said before walking toward the elevator lobby.

L sat in silence, his eyes wide. His mentor and adoptive father had never confided in him that way. "Where are you going?" He asked, but the old man did not answer him.

Watari went upstairs to check on Misa. He wanted to ensure that she was ok as the doctors specifically said that she should avoid stressing herself for her and her baby's sake. He knocked but no one answered. He frowned, worried. The old man walked into the apartment and looked around for the blonde. He was surprised to hear that everything was quiet. He continued to search the apartment until he reached the bathroom and saw Misa's unconscious form on the floor. He was startled upon seeing her in such state, but immediately jumped into action. He knelt beside Misa and felt for breathing and a pulse. He determined she was alive but he would need to get her to a doctor immediately. He quickly went to leave the apartment and get L, but that was unnecessary. As soon as Watari opened the door, the detective was already walking by him, rushing to the bathroom.

"L-"

"I saw she was unconscious on the cameras. I already called her doctor" Said an alarmed L as he knelt down next to Misa. Frowning, he caressed her face and called her name, attempting to get her to wake up. When she didn't, L took her into his arms, picked her up off the floor and carried her out of the apartment. Watari drove them to the hospital as fast as he could. Thanks to L, they were all ready for Misa when they arrived.

...

Two hours later, Misa opened her eyes to find herself once again in a plain white hospital room with dim lighting. She slowly turned her face and felt her heart clench as she was face to face with the root of her distress. L was crouching on the seat next to her bed, his dark eyes studying her closely. She could have sworn she saw a look of pure guilt on his face. His downtrodden expression would have broken her heart, had he not already broken it himself earlier that day. She was about to say something but then the door opened and in walked the female doctor that had tended to her before.

"Hi My name is Dr. Meixner, but you can call me Rita. I figured since I'm officially your doctor, I should introduce myself." She said smiling brightly.

"Hi. Thank you for your help" Said Misa in a raspy, tired voice. "Is my baby ok?" The doctor hesitated for a moment, looking over the medical chart, frowning. Misa looked uneasy, her breath catching in her throat as she waited for the doctor's reply. She placed a hand on her stomach, and glared at L, praying that she hadn't lost her baby because of his actions.

"Yeah...your baby's fine" Answered the doctor. Misa sighed, relieved. "However, like I said before, these emotional outbursts have to stop. You've been lucky so far." Said Rita seriously.

"Right...lucky..." She said feebly, trying not to cry. The doctor noticed that Misa was getting a little upset and figured that the poor mother-to-be could use some support.

"Are you the father?" Asked Rita, turning to L. He nodded his head and then looked at Misa.

"Make sure she gets plenty of rest, eats well, and is in a peaceful environment" She told him. "Congratulations on your baby and you're free to go" Said the doctor, smiling, as she walked out of the room. Misa snorted as she rolled her eyes sarcastically.

"Congratulations...yeah. Right..." She muttered.

"Misa..." Said L, reaching for her hand. Misa retracted it.

"If you wanted to kill our child with your little spectacle well you've failed miserably." She told him as she got up from the bed, remembering her sprained ankle. L helped her get up and she accepted his help briefly.

"My intention was not to cause you or the child harm." He told her sincerely.

"Whatever. I have a few things to say to you about you know what, but not here" She told him. "Get out. I need to change into my regular clothes"

L did as she asked and waited for her outside with Watari. She came out of the room and they all went home. In the car Misa sat on the opposite side of the seat, looking out the window, her hand placed on her stomach. L eyed her longingly but respected that she wanted her space. When they arrived inside the main investigation room, Watari excused himself, leaving the two to talk. As he left, he gave L a pointed look that said "Here's your chance to fix things."

"What the fuck was that?" Asked Misa, looking at L straight in the eyes. L was not used to this side of her. He'd never seen her this angry.

"You want to talk about this now? You were just discharged from the hospital"

"Well too bad. We're talking about it now!" She said.

"Misa" He sighed with slumped shoulders. "What more is there to say? I think it's quite self-explanatory" He shrugged, diverting his gaze from her.

"So what the hell was today about? What you said on the Ferris Wheel? Was that just bullshit?!" She asked, trying to restrain her tears. "Look at me! Please, if you're going to lie to me, then at least do it to my face."

L slowly brought his gaze up from the floor to meet hers.

"Well?! I'm not here so you can give me the silent treatment. Answer the question" She said pushing him. He let her push him. She did it again, with more force, getting teary-eyed. "Answer the question, you cheater!" She said, slapping him. L allowed it without protest, knowing he deserved it.

"I'm sorry Misa...I made a mistake. I mistook my feelings and I realized..."

"Realized what?..." She whispered. emotionally preparing herself for the worst.

"...you're just not my type." Said L looking at her dead in the eyes. "I misread my emotions and mistook it for feelings of love but, you and I are very different and after dating you, I've concluded that you're not my type of woman." He said quietly.

Misa looked at him in disbelief, slowly shaking her head. She buried her face in her hands and wiped away the angry tears that were blurring her vision. She looked at the man she loved staring at her with that blank, guarded expression of his.

"I'm not your type...I'm not your type..." She repeated as if trying to convince herself of what she was hearing. "Are you _fucking _with me?!" She asked, her voice breaking in a mixture of outrage and hurt.

"I'm sorry if I mislead you." He said simply without batting an eyelash. Misa was speechless for a moment.

"I...I don't even know how I'm supposed to take that!" She said, getting upset again.

He said nothing, he just stood there looking at her with those dark, desolate eyes. She took a deep breath and gathered enough strength for a few last words.

"That's fine." She said blinking back her sorrow. "I'm glad...I'm glad that I'm not your type because you make Light look good!" She said before turning around and trudging up the stairs, sprained ankle and all. Angry tears tainted her cheeks, and she threw the door behind her as she walked into her apartment.

'_I'm_ _not__ his _type_?! What kind of fucking excuse is that?!' _She asked herself as she paced back and forth in her living room. She was done with him. She didn't want him looking at her crying through the cameras, she just wanted to be left alone. She knew where most of the cameras were hidden in her apartment and so she went around throwing whatever she could find at each camera until they broke off from their spots. One by one, L watched the live videos from Misa's apartment go black.

'_Fuck you L, I'm not gonna let you have front seats to my misery' _She thought as she swatted each camera in her apartment off the walls, with the exception of the one in her kitchen, which she did not find. Afterward, she went to her bedroom, shut the door, turned off all the lights, and burrowed herself in between the sheets to cry in solitude.

-_Days later- _

Things were tense at Headquarters and to make matters worse, Light had returned. At first everyone was weary, but then Light cleared the air, saying that to him, catching Kira was the most important thing and that personal disputes should not come in between them and that goal. Light's words relieved the rest of the task force. However, L knew it all to be a load of lies. He simply ignored the brunette sitting beside him, as his mind was too preoccupied with other matters to worry about Light.

Misa had not been seen in days, and her absence was blatant. The other KIT members asked about her constantly but each time they asked, L remained silent. Matsuda and the others were worried about her since the cameras in her apartment were all out. Not withstanding L's silence anymore, Matsuda took it upon himself to find out what had happened. He went up to visit Misa. It took a while for her to open the door to him but he was glad that she did. She looked like she'd been through hell and back and could use a friend at the moment.

"Aw, thank you for worrying Matsu. You're the best" She told him with a sad smile as she sat on the couch with her legs drawn up to her chest.

"Don't mention it. We're all really worried about you Misa. Ryuzaki looks like hell too, and he's been in a sour mood ever since you stopped going to the investigation room."

"Has he?" She asked, ignoring the small flutter in her heart at the mention of L. Matsuda nodded. "Well good. He's a jerk"

Matsuda gave her a puzzled look and she figured that it was only fair to tell him what happened. She went over all the major details of her fight with L, and by the end, Matsuda was speechless.

"He really said that you're not his type?! Man that's the lamest excuse I've ever heard! Just look at you, any man would be happy to have you. And to top it off you're funny, sweet, and brave. And smart too. Without you, we wouldn't have been able to catch Higuchi so quickly" He said, bringing a smile to her face. She was so glad she could count on Matsuda.

"Have you been eating at all? You look a little thinner than usual..." He asked her, a worried look on his face.

"I tried to eat to stay healthy for my baby but I can't keep most of what I eat down these days. Between morning sickness and then...all..._this" _She said motioning to nothing in particular. "...I'm just not very hungry..." She finished, downcast. "Although...want to know something? I've really really really been craving chocolates and strawberries" She confided. Matsuda got an idea just then.

"That's great! How about I get a bunch of strawberries and chocolates for you now? It's lunchtime anyway" He said, and Misa's face lit up at his proposal.

...

Back in the main investigation room, Light inwardly grinned as he looked at L's sullen appearance.

"Trouble on the love front, Ryuzaki?" He asked, rubbing it in. L said nothing but kept working as he inwardly cursed the brunette. "You don't have to be shy about it, Ryuzaki. You know that I'm an expert on Misa, having dated her before you. If you ever need advice, I'm right here" He said, grinning.

"Thank you." L said curtly.

'_Oh L...this is just the beginning of your suffering. I'm going to take everything from you...everything.' _Thought Light, delighted, looking at L.

'_He's staring at me with that creepy glare again...what is he thinking?...' _Thought L, glancing at Light. He hated it when Light just stared at him like that, it made him feel like he should be watching his back.

Matsuda silently walked into the main investigation room with a bag full of chocolates and strawberries. Upon seeing that not much had changed since he left, he sneaked back out to take the elevator up to Misa's room. Of course, L noticed Matsuda's movements, but he did not object. He didn't want Misa to be alone right now.

"Thank you so much Matsu! What would I do without you?" Yelled Misa, sounding more like her usual self. She snatched the bag from him, grabbed a few bars of chocolate and a pack of strawberries and plopped herself on the couch, eating fervidly.

"No problem!" He said chuckling. He'd never seen Misa pig out this way before. "Hey Misa, from the way you're devouring that chocolate, I'm starting to think that your kid is gonna be just like L." Misa stopped and paled at the thought. It would be her crappy luck if her baby turned out to be another L. She pictured a mini raven-haired detective constantly crying and demanding candy while babbling on about justice. She grimaced in horror, and prayed that Matsuda was wrong.

"Have you thought about what you're gonna name him or her?" Asked Matsuda. Misa smiled and thought for a moment.

"Um...well I was thinking that if it's a boy I'll name him Mihael like my grandfather. If it's a girl, well, I haven't thought of what I would name her."

...

The rest of the week went by uneventful. Matsuda visited Misa every day, task force didn't uncover any new leads, L was still miserable, and Light was as smug as ever, eating it all up. Today was different though. With Matsuda's help, Misa worked up the courage to return to the investigation room.

"Misa Misa! Today is the day! Your grand return to the Kira Investigation Taskforce!" He announced that morning as he opened up all the curtains in her apartment, letting the light in. Misa winced at the sudden brightness.

"Oh boy. I just can't wait..." She said not sounding the least bit enthusiastic.

"Misa! Don't you want to show everyone how well you're doing?"

"I guess? Yeah..." She said, biting her nails anxiously.

"And don't you want to make a statement about how strong you are?"

"Yeah" She said a little louder.

"And don't you want to show L and Light how wrong they were to mistreat you?" He asked her enthusiastically.

"YEAH! I got this Matsu!" She said, getting up off the couch. "Wait...Light is back?!"

"Yeah, he came back last week" He told her.

Misa groaned and fell back on the couch. She really didn't feel like seeing both Light and L. While she didn't feel anything for Light anymore, she hadn't seen him since she found out she was pregnant and she didn't want any trouble.

"It's gonna be fine Misa. Things aren't as tense as you would think. It should be alright" Reassured Matsuda.

"...I don't know..." She said, biting her lip. "Oh what the hell. I'm gonna get ready and walk in there looking like it's my birthday!" She said with a fire in her eyes.

"That's the spirit! I'll wait while you get ready, ok?" Said Matsuda.

"Thanks so much. I don't know what I'd do without a friend like you" She told him before going to pick out her outfit.

..._In the main investigation Room..._

"Man, what are we doing here, Ryuzaki? How many Kiras are we looking for?" Asked Aizawa, disgruntled.

"We are looking for two Kiras. Kira number 3 and Kira number 1." Responded L shortly, without taking his eyes off his computer screen. He reached over to a bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries next to him and grabbed one. It was the first time in days that he'd had anything sweet. Ever since his fight with Misa, he had lost his appetite completely. He'd barely slept also, which attributed the return of the dark circles under his eyes.

"What about the Second Kira? Shouldn't we find him too?"

Then, as if on cue, the door to the main investigation room opened and Matsuda walked in with Misa following right behind him.

"Matsuda where were-" Trailed off Aizawa as he caught a glimpse of Misa. "Misa...you're here!"

Upon hearing Misa's name, both L and Light turned toward the door. L felt his heartbeat quicken at the sight of her, and it was then that he realized just how much he missed having her around him. She greeted everyone with a smile that wasn't quite as bright as it used to be. She walked past everyone else until she reached her seat next to him.

"Hi L. Hi Light" She said, nonchalantly before sitting down. The two men simply eyed her, one with suspicion, the other with curiosity. Misa ignored them equally.

"Watari, can you please bring me the documents I asked for?" She asked to no one in particular. Watari's jovial voice over the intercom announced that he would be right over. "Thanks so much! You're a dear" She said. L continued to look at her. Misa couldn't take it anymore. She was doing her best to ignore the beating of her heart, the fluttering feeling she got when she looked at that stupid panda that broke her heart into pieces. Now he was staring at her, and she felt as though he was looking right through her facade.

"You know that it's really rude to stare?" She said turning to him. Just then, Watari came into the room, carrying a stack of papers that was as thick as the Kira Case portfolio that Mogi compiled. The old man dropped the papers off on Misa's desk and she happily accepted them. '_Finally, something to get my mind off things' _She thought. L looked over at the stack of papers and she narrowed her eyes at him. Before he could say anything, she took the stack of papers, stood up from her seat and then went over to sit next to Mogi.

"Mochi, I'm keeping you company. I can't work with _rude_ people peering over my shoulder." She said, jabbing at L. She dropped the papers off and then went back to L's side and grabbed the bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries just as he was about to reach for another. He looked at her, surprised by her stealing his strawberries.

"Don't give me that look. It's the least you owe me after all you've done!" She snapped at the confused L.

Aizawa whistled, impressed with Misa's outcry against the detective.

"Well someone's in the dog house!" Commented Aizawa jokingly. L bit his thumb and turned back to his work. '_I'm...in the doghouse?' _He thought.

A very intrigued Light Yagami was studying the scene before him closely, measuring the situation. Things seemed to be tipping in his favor and he could barely contain his elation. '_This is going to be easier than I thought...' _He thought as he decided to set his plan in motion.


	17. Memories

**Writer's Note:** _Hey everyone. Thanks for reading this far. I really appreciate all the comments I've been getting so please don't be shy about telling me what you guys think! I'm done with school for the semester and my summer job doesn't start till next week so from now till then, guess what I'm gonna be doing? Dedicating a ton of attention to this fic (yay!). My plan is to update a lot quicker than I usually do. Don't be surprised if I throw two or maybe three chapters at you guys at a time haha. I'm so excited for what's to come in this story and I hope you guys will like it. __I promise it has a happy ending lol  
_

* * *

The next day, Misa heard a knock at her door. '_That's gotta be Matsu again' _She thought. When she opened the door, she nearly screamed when she saw who it was. Light Yagami stood at the entrance of her apartment, holding a bouquet of flowers out to her.

"Hello, Misa" He said, smiling at her. In another time, she would have melted for that boyish smile, but now she didn't even flinch. Light asked to come inside and she allowed him in, wondering what L thought about this little visit. Secretly, she hoped he was wallowing in jealousy.

"Does L know you're here?" She asked him, closing the door. The two went to sit on the couch, where Misa sat cross-legged at a modest distance from Light.

"He probably has a hunch but since you knocked out all the cameras, there's absolutely no way for him to know what's going on in here" He said, hinting at a romantic rendezvous. She simply gave him a blank stare. Not what he was hoping for, but that didn't faze him.

"...right." She responded, feeling awkward. "So what brings you here?" She asked, looking at the flowers that she assumed were meant for her. Light once again smiled at her and pressed the flowers into Misa's hands. She accepted them and returned his smile.

"They're beautiful! Thank you" She said, flattered. '_Now if only you had done shit like this while we were still going out...'_

There was an awkward silence as Misa looked at Light expectantly. The brunette took this as his cue to speak and he leaned in closer to Misa, making her want to shrink back. "Listen, Misa. I know I wasn't the best boyfriend to you" He started. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes_. 'He can say that again'_ She thought sarcastically.

"...But I want you to know that I'm terribly sorry for not being there for you. I was really busy at the time with school and work. I let that get in the way of our relationship. It was stupid of me, and believe me, I do value you as a woman." He said, sounding sincere. Misa already knew where this was going and she was dreading it. "Please forgive me if I'm stepping out of line here, but is there any way that you could find it in your heart to forgive me, and maybe, give it another shot?"

There it was. He'd said it. Light wasn't a fan of groveling but he did want to take Misa away from L and regain his pride. It would be worth it in the end. Misa tried her best to keep a poker face. She still couldn't believe this was actually happening, that Light really wanted her back even if she was expecting another man's child. '_Men...who understands them?' _She thought.

"Light. I don't know what to say...I accept your apology but I just don't think we should go out again under these circumstances-"

"I know you're having problems with Ryuzaki. Matsuda pretty much told everyone what happened. I want to treat you well Misa, Ryuzaki clearly doesn't know what to do with a woman like you. Get back with me" He said, daring to lean in for a kiss. Misa quickly blocked his face with the flowers he'd given her and shifted even further from him. She was annoyed now.

"You know Light, just because I'm not with L right now, doesn't mean that I have to be with you. I can be by myself you know! I choose neither! I'm my own person and I just want to be alone right now. Thanks for the offer though" She said_. _Light was flabbergasted. He looked as though she had just slapped him. He turned a shade of red and looked down at his lap. '_Bitch...' _He thought. '_Time for plan_ _B_'

"Fine. I understand and I'm happy you feel that way. You're completely right" He said, slapping on a smile and looking up at her once more. Misa was confused now.

"Just please do me one last favor, as a way to give closure to our failed relationship." He said seriously. Misa was all ears now.

"Ok. Shoot."

"You remember that time that we watched a movie together and I told you that I would need to make an odd request from you?"

Misa thought back to that night. She remembered that he had made her promise to do something for him that might seem strange at first, but that would help solve the case. She nodded her head to indicate that she recalled the night he spoke of.

"Good. Well I need you to do that now. Will you?" He asked. Misa once again nodded. "Good. Here's what I need you to do" He said. She listened carefully to everything Light told her and he was right about being a strange request.

"So let me get this straight...you want me to go into that park, find a landmark, and dig for whatever it is that's there?" She repeated, quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes, and don't forget to bring an apple! That is _very_ important" He told her. Misa nodded with understanding and agreed to go right after they were done talking.

"Thank you Misa. And one more thing, as soon as you find what's buried in the landmark, please call me." He instructed with a grin on his face.

"Will do!" She said, walking him out of her apartment. Once she closed the door behind him, she went to get ready to go out on her scavenger hunt. She left her apartment and took the elevator down to the main entrance, however as she was about to walk out the front she walked right into the glass door.

"What the-?" She said, and placed her hand on the door. It would not budge. "What the hell is going on?"

She cursed inwardly and turned back. There was only one explanation to this.

"Ryuzaki! Open the door. I need to go out" She said, walking into the investigation room.

"And do what? Get yourself kidnapped and plunge us into yet another rescue mission? I don't think so." He said, not looking at her.

Misa was fuming. She walked up to him and turned his chair around so he would face her. "Open that door, now." She said, dangerously close to his face. Light was watching them, trying not to seem too invested in the situation, though of course, he too wanted to yell at Ryuzaki to open the damn door.

"Promise me you're not going to do anything dangerous" He told her, inching his face closer to hers. Misa had to fight the temptation to kiss him.

"I'll do what I want" She hissed at him. L caressed her cheek and she softened a little at his touch. His dark eyes showed genuine concern for her.

"Promise" He said gently, looking at her in the eyes, hypnotizing her with those endless pools of gray.

"Whatever. I wasn't planning on doing anything dangerous anyway. I'm only going to the park." She said, but she could tell that L was not satisfied with her answer. She sighed and gave in. "Fine! I promise."

With that, L relaxed a little and nodded his approval. Misa promptly exited the investigation room and walked out the front door.

'_What the hell is wrong with me? L treats me like garbage and I still want to kiss him?! I must be a masochist'_ She thought as she walked toward the park. _'And__ what's with him touching me like that if he's not interested in me? I seriously want to smack him for not making any god damned sense. As a matter of fact...I think I WILL smack him when I get back! What's he gonna do? Probably just stand there like a stupid panda and look at me all guilty! I hate him...' _

_..._

Back at Headquarters, Light checked his watch for what seemed to be the tenth time. He estimated that Misa should be arriving at the location any moment now and he was almost giddy with anticipation as he awaited her call. He glanced at L sitting next to him and fantasized about his death.

'_Ryuzaki, I should thank you for your emotional ineptitude. By slighting Misa, you've made her that much more receptive to killing you by writing your real name in the death note that she's about to uncover. I could be watching you drawing your very last breaths right now.'_

...

Misa reached the park within half an hour of leaving headquarters. Along the way, she stopped at a local fruit vendor to buy an apple like Light told her to. Now all that was left was to find the landmark he spoke of.

"Hmm...he said it was between two large sycamore trees..." She said to herself as she looked around, evaluating each tree in her surrounding. "Sycamore trees are pretty big, so it's gotta be here." She said, examining the two over sized trees at either side of her. The two biggest ones she had seen around. She felt the ground for any soft spots until she found one. She began digging with a little pail she had in her backpack. A few minutes later, she hit something. It was a box. Misa was intrigued by the box and so she picked it up and examined it. A very faint creepy laughter resonated between the trees, giving her the creeps.

'_What the heck was that?' _She thought, looking around. The Shinigami Ryuk was there, observing her, eager for her to finally uncover the death note. He was cackling, anticipating the end of his boredom. Misa shook the nerves off and opened the box, seeing what looked to be a black notebook with illegible symbols written across the front.

"Oh wow. This looks like Higuchi's notebook" She said, grabbing it. As soon as her hand grabbed the notebook, Misa gasped loudly as she felt herself going into a trance-like state. Memories flashed quickly across her mind. These were her missing memories that spanned the period of time from her incarceration until she surrendered her Death Note. She was frightened by what she was remembering, and by the end, she was breathing heavily. When the flashes were over she was on her backside, on the floor.

"Hey there. It's about time!" Said Ryuk, waving at Misa's surprised form.

"This...this is all screwed up...this can't be, this has to be a nightmare. Please tell me this isn't real!" She said, burying her head in her hands. Ryuk simply looked at her perplexed.

"Hey relax. It's not that serious. And no, this isn't a dream." Said the Shinigami. Misa looked at Ryuk with a horrified expression, shaking her head slowly. Ryuk tsk'd and waved a disapproving finger at her before cackling again.

"And here I thought you'd be happy to see me" He said. Misa was livid.

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND YOU SELFISH SHINIGAMI! I...I slept with L, many times. And I'm _pregnant. _And I'm in love with that jerk, and I'M THE SECOND KIRA!" She said hyperventilating. "Oh gosh, I need to calm down. I need to breathe, and calm down" She said to herself.

"Oooh that sounds...so interesting. This is going to be fun!" Concluded the Shinigami. For a being that claimed to care so little about the lives of humans, Ryuk sure loved drama.

Misa groaned and got up from the floor. She took the notebook and eyed it wearily. "This was my death note" She said. "How come you're here and not Rem?" She asked.

"Oh, Light made me switch notebooks with Rem. Don't ask me why, he just did." He answered. Misa sighed and put the notebook inside her backpack.

"Hey, aren't you forgetting something?!" Asked Ryuk, twitching. Misa looked at him and then at her backpack, remembering to give him the apple. She did so and the Shinigami happily took it and devoured it in gulps.

'_I'm so screwed...what am I supposed to do now? Call Light I guess...' _

She took out her cellphone and dialed Light's number.

..._At Headquarters..._

Light's cell phone rang. L glanced at Light with mild curiosity as the brunette excused himself to take the call.

"Actually, I'll be taking my lunch break now. I'll be back in half an hour" He told L. Everyone else had left for lunch as well, leaving the raven-haired detective by himself. Watari walked in just as Light sped past him, nearly bumping into the old man.

"Must be an important call" Noted Watari. L said nothing on the matter. He was more interested in what Watari was doing in the main investigation room.

"Tell me L, when you said that you knew Misa was the Second Kira, you never told me how you determined that. Are you sure that you are not drawing a false conclusion about her?" He asked in hopes of defending the young mother-to-be.

L was silent for a moment then reached for something hidden underneath a pile of papers beside his computer. It was a black notebook that resembled the death note he'd recovered from Higuchi. He flipped the pages of the mysterious notebook until he found what he was looking for: a torn out page. He then reached for another piece of paper that he had been saving in a plastic baggie underneath his laptop. It was the torn out journal page sent by the Second Kira along with one of the tapes. It was the same page that described the alleged meeting between the two Kiras in Aoyama, as well as the notebooks and the "Shinigami."

L turned his chair around and held the two items side by side for Watari to see. The torn out page sent by the second Kira matched the torn out edges of the missing page in the journal. Not only that, but the bubbly, cursive penmanship in the journal and the torn out page, was identical.

"This page, as you know, was sent by the Second Kira along with one of the tapes. It was torn out from this journal. This journal belongs to Misa" L said regretfully. "Misa and the Second Kira are one and the same."

"I see..." Said the old man. "And how long have you know this?"

"I've been taking her journal for weeks now. Each time, I left it somewhere different to make her think that someone was reading her journal. I figured that if she thought someone suspected her secret, she would feel cornered and confess to me, especially since I gained her trust. But she never did come to me..." He said, gloomily.

"So if you've known for this long, why didn't you arrest her and interrogate her with this evidence in hand?"

This was the question that L feared to answer most. Why hadn't he acted against Misa earlier? He knew that Watari was cornering him with that one. He could say that he wanted Misa's cooperation in catching the first Kira, but that would only be a half truth. The complete truth was that his feelings for Misa got in the way and that he couldn't bring himself to do it. That he was weak and he fell hopelessly in love with a beautiful criminal. What started as an attempt at gaining her allegiance became his own undoing as he fell victim to his own game. That was the real answer. Of course, he opted to remain silent rather than admit his true feelings.

L turned his chair around and ignored the old man as he often did whenever he no longer wanted to continue a conversation. Unfortunately for L, Watari was no fool. He saw right through L like clear water.

"Because you love her" Said the old man, voicing what was in L's heart. At L's lack of response, the old man smiled to himself, relieved to finally know just how his adoptive son felt about Misa. Satisfied, he left L to battle it out with his own thoughts and feelings.

...

Misa held the phone shakily. She could practically feel Light grinning on the other end of the line.

"Well done Misa. Now I need you to write down L's real name in the notebook." He said. Misa felt queasy at this request, the thought of killing L chilling her to the bone. How could he expect her to do such a thing?

"I'm sorry Light, but I can't. Whether I like it or not, L's the father of my child and I can't murder him. He may be a jerk but I...just can't. And even if I wanted to, I don't remember his real name." She told him. Upon hearing this, Light nearly split his cell phone in two from how hard he was gripping it. He was furious and he was thankful that Misa was not standing in front of him for he may have lost it just then.

"What do you mean you don't remember his name?" Light responded through gritted teeth, trying to contain his anger.

"I don't. I remember it was a weird name but when I had the eyes, I saw so many names at every hour of ever day, it's all a big jumbled mess!" She said, raising her voice. Light took a deep breath and composed himself, knowing that if he pressed the issue like this, he would lose Misa.

"Very well. Now listen carefully to what I'm going to say next Misa." She listened. "L is getting _very_ close to finding out our identities. When he does, he's going to have us executed" He lied.

"He wouldn't. I know he wouldn't, he's not a monster" Said Misa hoping her feelings toward L weren't impairing her judgement.

"Oh but he is. I asked him what he intended to do once he found out the identities of the Second and First Kira. He said he would send us straight to death row without a second thought. Think about what that means Misa. He would kill your baby, you know he would." At this part, Misa cringed and moved a protective hand to her stomach as she felt panic spread through her.

"He tried to do it once and he would do it again, and even if he spared you long enough to give birth, he'd still have you killed afterward. And then, what will happen to your child at the mercy of L? Think about that Misa..." The blonde was speechless as she considered Light's words.

"The best we could hope for is life in prison, and that wouldn't change the fact that your baby will be torn from your arms and given to L to do as he wishes. Is that what you want Misa?" Said Light striking at her most sensitive chord. "_Is it?"_

"No" She said feebly.

"Then you know what you must do. Make the deal with Ryuk for the Shinigami Eyes and we can save ourselves, and your child."

"I...I don't know, Light" She said, her voice cracking. "I'm so confused..."

Light rolled his eyes. He could feel a migraine coming on. He looked at his watch and saw that he had 20 minutes left before he had to be back at Headquarters. If he took a taxi, he could reach Misa in about 5 minutes and be back in time to avoid raising any suspicions.

"Misa, stay right there. I'm coming to you" He said as he hung up the phone.

...

It was raining. L liked the rain. The detective stood on the roof of Headquarters, enjoying the steady beating of the rain against his skin, each droplet lulling the millions of processes in his mind. L couldn't abandon or shut off who he was, but in moments like these, he could take a break. One thought, however, would not lay to rest like the others. Misa.

L looked up at the gray skies with a melancholy expression. Everything that Watari had said to him was true. He loved Misa, and he was an idiot for doing this to her. He didn't know why it was that he did the things he did or sabotaged the things he cherished but he hated himself for it. Then again, justice was one heavy bitch to carry all by oneself; most people would crack under the pressure. But not him, and he'd carried this burden for as long as he could remember. It made him who he was.

He reflected on the situation at hand. If he arrested Misa as the Second Kira and handed her to the ICPO, she would be dead for sure. As much as he fought against admitting it, he would never allow that. For that reason he had to be very careful, as the ICPO was not an organization to be trifled with. The way he saw it, the only way to save Misa was to catch the big fish, THE Kira. Light Yagami. If Misa helped him, he could make a case for her in the eyes of the ICPO and grant her a pardon on the grounds that she was instrumental to solving the case. She may not be freed from surveillance, but she would be alive. She and the child..._their _child...

...

Misa sat at the entrance of the park, underneath a canopy that shielded her from the heavy rain. A taxi cab pulled up just then, and when she looked up, Light was standing in front of her. She had been crying again. Light noticed this and without saying anything to her, he brought her into a hug, which she reciprocated. Ryuk's cackling as he saw the two Kiras embrace each other was all that could be heard over the rain.

"Misa, I know you're conflicted, but you have to understand that it's either him, or us and your baby." He said as he placed his hand over hers on her stomach. Misa accepted the comforting touch. Her eyes were trained on the ground as she nodded her head, indicating that she understood.

"I know..." She whimpered. "But I don't know if I can..."

Light watched her for a moment and then asked her for the Death Note. Misa obliged cautiously, wondering what Light was going to do. She still had to be careful with him as he could trick her at any moment, even if Rem had threatened to kill him if he murdered her. She could not see Rem, but the blonde was certain that the Shinigami still watched over her. Light took the Death Note from her, wrote something on it, and then tore it off the notebook and handed it to Misa.

She read the piece of the Death Note silently, with Ryuk looking over her shoulder. It said "...dies by committing suicide. Goes on Sakura TV's show where he reveals his identity, expresses support for Kira, and calls off all police support for the Kira Investigation. Then, shoots himself in the head with a revolver." Her hand shook as she read the paper. There was no name written on it, but she knew that this death was meant for L. Ryuk laughed, loving Light's plan.

"It's a death he deserves. It's memorable and worthy of him. He doesn't deserve to die of a heart attack like some common criminal, I know you wouldn't want that." Said Light, calmly. He looked at his watch one last time. He was out of time.

"I need to go now, Misa. I trust you. I'll be waiting for you at Headquarters" He said as he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her lips. Misa was so stunned that she did not even have time to react to the gesture. Light boarded the Taxi, and in a flash, he was gone.

...

L walked back into the main investigation room, a towel around his shoulders as he finished drying himself off. As soon as he walked in, he noticed that everyone was gathered around Light, debating something amongst themselves. He stopped and looked at them. The room fell silent when they all noticed him standing there.

"Ryuzaki! We were wondering where you were! There's been a new development!" Announced Aizawa. The group opened up a path for Light, who walked forward toward L with a determined look.

'_Misa, you pathetic excuse for a Kira. You've left me no choice. I gave you a chance to save yourself and your miserable bastard child, but you failed me time and again'_ Thought Light as he came to stand face to face with L.

"I know the real Kira's identity" He said.


	18. Betrayal

**Writer's Note: **_Hi! I'm not sure why, but I don't think anyone got notified of my previous chapter update (Memories, chapter 17). If you haven't read it, then go back to that or else you'll be hella confused haha.__ Anyway, it's time for another chapter, because, why not? Plus I've been waiting to get to this point for a while. As always, comments and reviews are very much appreciated as they keep me motivated. Now on to the story._

* * *

Hours had passed since Misa spoke with Light. Their conversation had left her scared and confused so she wandered the streets, thinking, sorting out her feelings. Clutching the wrinkled Death Note piece in her hands, she concluded that Light was right. However, she still would not kill L, not without talking to him first. If what Light said was true and L was on the cusp of finding out their identities, then she might as well come clean now and hope for the best. She looked at her phone and nearly panicked when she saw that it was already 11pm.

'_Shit! L must be on the verge of sending out a search party. Now he'll never trust me to go out again...' _She groaned, finding it strange that she hadn't received any calls from him asking why she was taking so long at the park. She walked as fast as she could back to Headquarters and went inside.

Misa stepped into the main investigation room, and immediately, she knew something was off. For starters, it was past 11pm and every single task force member was still there. The only time they ever stayed that late was when they found a new lead, which, to her knowledge, hadn't happened. Another weird thing was the way they were all staring at her with a seriousness she'd never seen before.

"Hey...you're all here pretty late. Did something come up?" She asked. Most of the KIT members gave each other a look and then averted their eyes to the floor, as if they were uncomfortable with her. Misa eyed them all with unease. Light stood up from his chair and walked up to her. Misa stepped away from him. L stood up as well.

"Is something wrong?...Why are you all staring at me like that?" She asked, getting alarmed. It was then that Light grabbed her roughly by the arm. Misa recoiled, wondering what the hell he was doing.

"Light! What the hell? Let me go!" She demanded.

"It's over Misa. Or should I say, _Kira_?" Said Light icily.

"'_WHAT?!_ Is this a joke?!"

She forcefully pulled her arm out of Light's hands and he quickly grabbed her backpack. She tried to stop him but he'd already pulled out the death note inside, holding it out for all to see.

"I told everyone about how you called me today to convince me to help you kill L with this Death Note! You told me how much you hated L and wanted retribution for what he did to you. You're done, Kira. Your reign of terror is over!" He told her harshly as he grabbed her by the wrists even harder than before. Misa struggled hard to free herself but was unsuccessful.

"You're a liar!" She yelled frantically. "This is a setup! You fucking set me up!"

Light saw that she still had his piece of the death note clenched in her fist. He pried open her hand and held the paper out to L.

"A set up?! No Misa! You were coming here to kill L and here's the proof!" He said. L stepped forward and took the paper from Light. Misa struggled even harder.

"NO! L, please don't read that!"She begged.

He ignored her as he unwrapped the paper.

"Don't! I know this looks very bad, but please don't believe a word he says. I can explain everything! I swear I wasn't going to kill you! I _love_ you, you're the father of my baby, I would never kill you. Please you HAVE to believe me!" She implored with tears in her eyes. Light held her back roughly. L was quiet as he read the paper. He knew exactly what the paper was and what it was meant for.

'_This isn't...' _

"OOWW! You fucking BITCH!" Yelled Light as Misa bit down hard on his hand, drawing blood. In retaliation, he grabbed her by the hair harshly, surprising even the other KIT members with the way he was hurting her.

"I HATE YOU LIGHT! All your words were _bullshit _you miserable _scumbag..."_ Cried Misa, helplessly, no longer trying to struggle against him.

"Light, let her go." Said L. Light looked at him like he was crazy, not making a move to release her. "I _said _to let her go" He repeated sharply. Light reluctantly did as he was told and immediately, Misa ran to L. She hugged him as tight as she could and buried her face in his chest, shaking and sobbing.

"L..._please...believe me_...I'm _not _Kira, and I _didn't _come here to kill you. I swear on my life and the life of our child!" She said choking and sobbing into his chest. His white shirt was now wet with her tears. L wrapped his arms around her and Misa looked up at him with a desperate, teary-eyed expression. His gray eyes were unreadable as he looked back at her. He pressed his forehead against hers, his raven bangs brushing her blonde ones, and for a second Misa thought he was going to kiss her. Instead he whispered to her.

"I'm sorry..."

And with those words, she felt something cold snap around her wrist. She looked down, and saw that L had placed handcuffs on one of her wrists. Misa stepped away from him, shocked.

"Nooo! Please! Don't do this..." She cried to him desperately. Misa tried to tug herself away by yanking on the steel chain but L would not budge. She looked around at the other KIT members for help.

"Aizawa...Mochi...Mr. Yagami...MATSU! Anyone..." She pleaded. They all remained silent, not able to look her in the eyes. Finally she slumped onto the floor, a defeated, a teary-eyed mess.

Light stepped forward and just to add pain to injury, he showed L the page of the death note where Misa had allegedly ripped out the paper with his death written on it. L simply looked at it and then at the piece of paper with his death written in neat stick letters. He narrowed his eyes slightly, concluding that Light must not have known about Misa's journal.

'_It's painfully obvious that t__his isn't Misa's handwriting. __Light, you've made a fatal mistake here today' _Thought the detective shrewdly, relieved to finally have a piece of concrete evidence against Light. He looked at Misa and then at Light, who was bending down to grab her once more. Over L's dead body would he allow Light to get a hold of Misa like that again. He put a firm hand on Light's shoulder to get his attention.

"That won't be necessary, Light. Matsuda, please take Misa to her apartment where she is to remain indefinitely. I trust you'll be gentle with her. " Said L to the young police officer. If there was anyone that he could trust to be good to Misa, it was Matsuda.

"Right" Said Matsuda, walking toward the distraught blonde and gently helping her to her feet. Misa silently obeyed and walked with her head hung low. The rest of the KIT members looked on sadly as she was escorted out of the main investigation room and into the elevator lobby. Once they were gone, everyone released their breaths collectively.

They all quietly gathered around, discussing amongst themselves what they should do next. They knew they weren't done, as this still left the Second and Third Kira to be found. Even though they had just captured "The Kira" it somehow didn't feel like a victory at all, to any of them. This just didn't feel right.

Light sat at his desk, nursing his bloody hand. On the outside he looked serious and somber like everyone else, but on the inside, he was triumphant. Now that Misa was the prime suspect for Kira, he was free of suspicion, or so he thought. And he still had Mikami and the Shinigami eyes to help him. L walked up to Light, looking the same as usual, still holding onto that piece of paper.

"Thank you Light...for all you've done for this investigation" Said L, not really referring to Misa's capture. Light grinned and accepted his gratitude. For the time being, L did not possess a sample of Light's handwriting, but as sure as anything, he would obtain it.

..._Two months later..._

The KIT members sighed with fatigue and defeat for what felt like the umpteenth time. Two months had passed since Misa's capture and she hadn't said a word about Kira or anything else pertaining to the case. She was not allowed to leave her apartment or have any unauthorized contact with the outside world aside from the occasional house visit from her doctor. Most days, Matsuda along with another KIT member, went up to see her and interrogate her. However, each time anyone brought up the Kira case, she shut down and changed the topic.

As for L, he'd lost all notion of time as he submerged himself into every aspect of the case. In those two months, he had obtained a writing sample from Light without his knowing, and verified that the writing on the death note piece, was in fact his. He studied every rule of the death note and had them tested by a death row inmate, convincing himself that the death note works. He also painstakingly examined a list of dozens of thousands of potential Third Kira suspects, narrowing the list down by over 90% to 2,254 potential Third Kiras. As a result, he was currently pushing 192 hours, or 8 days straight, of work with no sleep. He had not even budged from his desk for the past 26 hours, just burning through Kira suspect profiles. While the rest of the Kira task force managed to collectively go through 2,000 profiles, L had already processed over ten times that amount by himself. This was mostly due to shear will power as his body was begging to succumb to rest. However L was determined to keep going for as long as it took to win it all.

...

Misa shot up into a sitting position on her bed as if someone had kicked her. Someone _did _kick her! The first genuine smile in two months came to her face as she put her hand over her 5 month-old bump that was her womb. She felt a flutter, and then another one. Misa started laughing. She hadn't laughed at all during her confinement, so this was a big moment. Right then, Matsuda walked into her apartment and found the usually sullen mother-to-be laughing hysterically by herself. He didn't know what to make of the scene before him.

"Misa...are you ok?" He asked, concerned. '_Oh no, she's finally cracked! I knew we would make her crazy!' _ He panicked.

"Matsu! Come here! Feel this!" She said, beckoning him toward her with her hand. Matsuda looked suspicious but he went and sat on the edge of her bed awkwardly. Misa grabbed his hand and placed it over her still modestly-sized belly. Matsuda made a face and jumped back a little.

"Oh! It's moving!" He said, amazed. "This is great news, Misa! Everyone's going to be so excited to hear about this!"

"Right..." she said, downcast. '_Everyone, except for the one who matters most'_. Matsuda excused himself to go spread the news. Misa shrunk back in her bed with a sad look on her face. '_I shouldn't get too excited. For all I know, I may be executed right after delivering. I may not even get to meet my baby before I'm whisked away to a prison somewhere...' _She sighed. '_Even if I do confess, I'm still the Second Kira so what good will that do?'_

She reclined back on her bed and tried to fall asleep. Sleep had not come easily to her these past two months. She often had nightmares about her being thrown in prison and executed while her baby suffered in an orphanage somewhere without parents to love him or her. Actually, in her dreams, her baby was always a boy. Maybe it was a sign that her child was going to be male but it was only speculation on her part. She would be happy either way. The young mother-to-be sighed, turned on her side and caressed her belly, trying to will herself to rest.

..._Meanwhile, __in the main investigation_ _room..._

L had unwillingly dozed off while reading the Third Kira suspect profile of a certain Teru Mikami. '_Right to the highly suspicious pile with this one...if I were Kira, I would choose him.' _He thought. He was woken abruptly from his impromptu nap by a lively conversation going on between Matsuda and the rest of the KIT members.

"You guys have to feel it. It's the coolest thing ever" Said Matsuda.

L's ears perked up at the mention of Misa and the baby. Apparently his child had started to kick. He was definitely intrigued. Matsuda went on about how excited Misa was to feel it kicking and how it felt when it kicked into his hand. For the first time ever, L actually felt jealous of Matsuda. While he knew that his jealousy was misplaced, L disliked the fact that Matsuda had shared such a moment with Misa before he had gotten the chance. Without saying a word to anyone, L got up from his chair. Everyone looked at him with interest as L hadn't stopped working in over a day. His legs were numb and almost atrophied from the prolonged time without usage. The detective nearly collapsed under the weight of his exhausted body which did not take well to moving around.

The detective walked past everyone to the elevator lobby and pressed the up button to go to Misa's floor.

'_What am I doing? Why am I even going there?' _He asked himself. His mind was definitely not working properly under the haze of fatigue and his body seemed to move on its own as the elevator door opened and he boarded it. Once on the elevator, L closed his eyes, and all was quiet. 'Ding!' the elevator doors opened once more, bringing him back to reality. He had dozed off yet again without realizing it, this time standing upright while on the elevator.

'_Sleep is such a nuisance. So much productivity and resources are lost as a consequence of sleep, I should invest some time figuring out a way to be productive while sleeping.' _He thought as he walked toward Misa's apartment. He let himself in and made his way to her bedroom.

Misa was tossing and turning on her bed, unable to sleep for the past hour. She put her hand inside the night table drawer beside her bed, looking for her journal. It wasn't there. She sighed, wondering where on earth she put the journal that she hadn't found it in the two months.

'_Maybe I should bribe Ryuk to find it for me. I bet he'd be good at that. Now if only I knew where he went, I haven't seen him since I was put on house arrest. Maybe he's_ _hiding..._'

Her thoughts were in interrupted by the sound of her front door opening and closing. She looked expectantly at her bedroom door and almost pinched herself when she saw who it was. L was standing there, looking at her after almost two months of not seeing her. She said nothing, just looking at him, cursing herself for feeling happy to see him.

"It's you." She said, trying to sound displeased. "What do you want?"

He walked closer to her and she saw that he looked more disheveled than usual, the dark circles under his eyes more pronounced than ever. He looked more asleep than awake, more dead than alive. L went over to the bed and she shrunk back, not knowing what to expect.

"I'm sorry Misa-san, I'm not thinking very clearly. May I...feel it moving?" He said, climbing in the bed next to her.

Misa looked at him, surprised. He was actually interested in his child? L was now kneeling next to her on the bed, seeing Misa and her belly for the first time. Last he'd seen her was when she was captured and she hadn't been showing then. She was not too big now either but it was obvious to the eyes that she was expecting. Misa saw uncertainty mixed with curiosity written on L's face as he stared at her belly. She softened a little and removed her hands from her stomach. She started to giggle and L looked at her, wondering what was so humorous.

"The baby's kicking now if you want to feel. It tickles a little..." She explained.

L hovered a shy hand over her stomach and tentatively placed it there. He felt a small flutter against his hand causing him to draw it back a little, then replacing it back on her belly. L was in awe. The corners of his mouth curved a little into a faint smile. This was the first time that he actually felt something concrete for this little creature he'd never met before. He didn't want to stop feeling it. Misa looked at him nervously, wondering what was going through his mind. She looked away from him because trying to read his expressions was stressing her out.

She wanted to cry out to him, tell him everything just then, and beg him to help her get out of this mess so she could keep her child. Maybe he would help her, or at least agree to see that her child was well cared for when she was gone. She closed her eyes, and without notice, she blurted it out.

"L, I'm the Second Kira" She said bravely. She kept her eyes shut, waiting for his response and praying that he took it well. He said nothing."...Did you hear what I said?" She opened her eyes to find that L was passed out face down on her bed, with his hand still on her stomach. She squealed and poked him to see if he would react. He did not. His slow, steady breathing indicated that he was very much asleep. Misa could not believe it.

"Are you serious?! L get up, you're not sleeping in my bed." She said sternly.

She tried pushing him off the bed but he was out cold and would not be easily moved. "Ugh! She huffed, annoyed, crossing her arms over her chest. For all that she had against L, having him close like this did make her feel comfortable, even peaceful. She stayed there for some time, just looking at his lean back rise and fall with each breath he took. Before she knew it, she'd fallen into a deep, much needed slumber as well.

In their dormant state, the two shifted so that L was spooning Misa as she laid on her side. His arm was wrapped around her waist and his hand hung easily on her stomach as if he were still feeling for his baby's movements. Misa could sleep like this forever. A small, lazy smile crept over her lips as she slept.

Several hours later, Misa opened her eyes, feeling refreshed after what seemed like the first time she'd truly slept in those two months. She still had that smile on her face, up until she felt it. Her eyes opened wide as she realized that she was trapped. She looked down at her waist and saw L's arms around her, hugging her to him as though she were his own personal teddy bear. Fighting her desire to submit to his embrace, she carefully began prying his arm off of her. She tried to do it gently at first to avoid waking him, but it was impossible; it was as though he had become rigid. She sighed in frustration and employed greater force this time. Still nothing. She then began writhing against him in efforts to create some room between them for her to escape through.

She stopped her struggling when she heard a moan from behind her. Misa froze and felt the hand around her waist trace the curve of her side and move down to her hips where they remained, pushing her further into him. The blonde froze and then turned to face her captor. Her hazel eyes landed on his dark gray ones. L was awake.

"What's your problem?" She hissed at him.

"You're trying to seduce me" He said simply. She looked at him, offended.

"_I'm _trying to _seduce _you?! I'm trying to get _away _from you"

"Then why are you grinding your perfect ass against my crotch?" He said with a bite. If she was going to be nippy with him then he was going to give back as good as he got. That was one of the things he lived by, "an eye for an eye." Misa couldn't believe he'd just said that to her.

"That's not what I...I wasn't...I hate you!" She said, blushing. L released her and sat up on the bed, looking at her without saying anything back. Misa glared at him. He lightly bit his index finger as he looked at her with that pseudo-smile of his. He found something amusing, and she didn't know what.

'_why is he looking at me like that?' _She thought, shifting uncomfortably on the bed. Just as she was about to ask him why the stupid look on his face, L answered.

"Misa..."

She looked at him expectantly. "Your boobs are bigger" He finished, blatantly ogling her. Her jaw dropped and she noticed that her tank top had ridden a little low on her chest while she slept, revealing more cleavage then she would have liked. She yelled, smacked L across the face and quickly covered herself.

"You pervert!"

"Misa, that hurt" He said, rubbing his cheek.

"Good!"

"Could you please do me a favor?" He asked her. She seemed interested in hearing what he had to say. "Could you stop hating me for an hour?"

"Why an hour?" She asked, frowning.

He didn't say, but then he moved in and kissed her. His kiss was firm but not rough, and it carried an urgency and need about it, that made Misa succumb to its effect.

'_I must not give in...I must not...give in...' _She kept repeating to herself. Yet, her body did the complete opposite. She allowed another kiss and this time, L ran his tongue lightly over her lips, requesting entrance. She granted him access and within minutes, L had managed to melt her inhibitions. He nestled himself between her legs, leaving just enough room for their child to not be squished under its dad's weight. Misa was wearing shorts and his hand was slowly creeping its way into them.

She felt his long fingers make contact with the fabric of her panties. He lightly ran a finger over her opening, causing her to spread her legs even more. Meanwhile, his other hand had snuck its way into her shirt and was firmly massaging one of her breasts. She voiced her pleasure and reached down slowly past his waistband. L moaned into Misa's mouth as she skillfully teased the bulge in his pants through his jeans. He kissed and sucked Misa's neck on his way down to her luscious, full breasts that he'd been dying to explore. Misa grabbed a fistful of his raven hair and lightly yanked it as he worked a couple of fingers inside her wetness, causing her to moan in response. Misa tugged on L's shirt, pulling it up to remove it, and he quickly discarded it. Then he made short work of her bra and tank top, leaving her exposed to him. They shared a look of pure lust and want, both of their hearts beating intensely.

Misa wanted him so bad, she was almost begging him to take her. Likewise, L was more than ready to rut her right then and there. He quickly resumed his work inside her shorts as his mouth took possession of her breasts. Misa wrapped her legs around him, bucking her hips against his groin, communicating her need to him. He tugged at her shorts and panties, and she raised her hips so that he could remove the offending fabric. Then Matsuda walked in.

"Misa, is L-AAAHHHH! SORRY!" Yelled Matsuda as he closed his eyes and put his hands up defensively. Misa screamed and dove under the blankets.

"What is it?" Asked L as though nothing was wrong.

"AHH...I...I..." Stammered Matsuda, tripping over something in Misa's room as he tried to find the door with his eyes closed. "There's been news..."

"It can wait half an hour" Said L as he turned around and fished Misa out from under the blanket, attempting to continue where they'd left off.

"L!" She protested. "Get off! We're not doing it while Matsuda's still here!"

"Why should I stop on his account? It's his problem if he wants to watch" L responded as though it were a perfectly normal thing. Matsuda's face turned pink, then red, and then it just went pale altogether. Misa was not having it.

"L, LEAVE. You and I are NOT on good terms and you know it! I don't know what's wrong with me, letting myself get carried away with you..._jerk! _

She threw him out of her bed with all her might and the detective went tumbling off the side. He caught himself and looked at Matsuda, unamused.

'_Matsuda you idiot' _He thought, mentally noting to get back at him for this incident. Just then Aizawa ran into the room and also screamed upon seeing L in nothing but boxers and Misa hugging the blanket up to her forehead.

"Um...sorry to interrupt, but we have good news or bad news depending on how you look at it." Said Aizawa, avoiding looking at L or Misa. Matsuda was huddled on an arm chair, his eyes still shut. L began to dress himself calmly, listening to Aizawa's report.

"Mass killing of criminals have started up again." He said gravely. Misa gasped and she felt an inkling of hope. L looked at Misa and then finished getting dressed. She narrowed her eyes at him as if saying '_Well at least I have an alibi that you can confirm' _

"Matsuda, you can open your eyes. We're leaving" Said L standing in front of the cop, fully clothed. And with that, Misa was left by herself with her unborn baby to ponder what may happen next.


	19. Confession

**Writer's Note: **_Hello readers. Thank you all for reading this far. I'm really excited to hear your reactions to this chapter. I can't say it enough: I love writing this story and I can't wait to write what happens next, especially after this whole Light thing. I think it's gonna be really cool and hopefully most of you will like it! Without further ado, here is chapter 19!_

* * *

The tension in the main investigation room was so thick, it could be cut by a knife. All the KIT members sat in front of a large monitor displaying all the latest Kira murders as they were being reported live. Mogi was typing up a profile for each one and appending them to the ever growing Kira Case file that he was in charge of compiling. So far there were 97 reported victims just in the past hour and counting. It was as if Kira were making up for lost time.

Light watched the screen, shocked and confused by this wave of mass executions. He had not yet resumed the mantle of Kira, and had no plans to do so until L was out of the picture. Not only that but Misa was supposed to be Kira, and it would look very suspicious if Kira returned while Misa was incarcerated.

'_What the hell is this?! Is Mikami acting on his own? That's the only explanation' _Thought the brunette, clenching his fists. He turned to L and saw that the detective was staring him down.

"Light, what do you make of this?" He asked.

"I don't know!" He responded curtly. "Obviously it doesn't make sense that this would be Kira because Misa is locked upstairs"

"Correct. I was thinking that this could be the work of the Third Kira" Observed L.

"I guess you could say that"

"Yes, this is intriguing because if Misa really is Kira, then I doubt the Third Kira would act so boldly and risk drawing attention to himself like this" Said L. "Unless...maybe the Third Kira doesn't know that we've captured the first Kira. That would mean that the Third Kira and the first Kira don't communicate directly..."

Light was sweating bullets. L was getting closer and closer to the truth without even realizing it. He had to act fast, but what could he do? At this rate he was going to have to suck it up and give up half his life span for the Shinigami Eyes. However, even with the eyes, L locked away both death notes somewhere, and he didn't have any more death note pieces on him. Mikami had pages of the death note but he only had contact with Mikami through Takada. He would have to call her. Light looked around and slowly began to get up from his chair.

"...but in order to pass Kira's power to Third Kira, the two Kiras must have communicated at some point. Some way. Maybe through a proxy or third party..."

'_Takada' _Thought Light. '_This is bad. I need to go_.'

Just as Light was about to walk out of the main investigation room, L stood up from his chair.

The detective eyed the pile of remaining Third Kira suspects. There were 2,250 left and it appeared that they were out of time. They would have to resort to alternative means to obtain the information they needed on this Third Kira. L sighed and turned to face the KIT members.

"Misa has to talk. There's a very strong possibility that she knows who the Third Kira is" He said.

"Yeah but Ryuzaki, she's refused to say anything about it" Pointed out Matsuda, shaking his head.

"Well, that's because you asked nicely. I won't make that mistake" Said L as he walked toward the elevator lobby. Matsuda tried to follow, both curious and concerned about what L was about to do.

"No, Matsuda. You will not come with me this time. I'll be going with Ide." He said. The young police officer frowned but did as he was told. After L left, the other KIT members broke out into arguments about what they should do next. Light took that as his chance to leave. It was more urgent than ever that he eliminate L quickly, especially if Misa committed the stupidity of confessing everything to L. If he could coordinate well with Mikami and figure out a plan to get the death notes back, then they could kill him as soon as today...

-_In Misa's apartment-_

The young mother-to-be sat by her large living room window overlooking the busy streets 15 floors below. She was peacefully eating her usual crave item of strawberries and chocolate, wondering what was happening with the new Kira murders. Maybe her name might be cleared since she was clearly not the one perpetrating the murders. She kept her fingers crossed for that to be the case.

Her apartment door opened and she turned to see who it was. She stood to her feet and watched L walk across her living room with Ide right behind him. She put aside her strawberries and gave him her undivided attention.

"What is it?" She asked expectantly.

"Misa. Your execution has been scheduled for today." He said seriously. Misa froze. Shock and fear slammed her. That was the last thing she expected to hear from him. "I'm here to take you to your execution location" He finished. Her eyes glazed over as she processed what he was telling her. It was then that she noticed Ide off to the side, handcuffs in hand, ready to put them on her. She backed up into the wall, shaking her head incredulously.

"You're lying" She said, breathlessly. "That can't be true...it can't"

"It is. I'm sorry Misa. I did everything I could" He told her, downcast.

"No..." She said wide eyed. Her knees gave way under her weight as she crumbled toward the floor, breathing heavily. L caught her quickly and set her down gently. He crouched next to her.

"But...I don't understand...don't I get a say in anything? I don't get to defend myself or even plead for my child to be allowed to live?" She said, sobbing into her hands. "This isn't right...I don't even care what happens to me but it's not fair to kill my innocent baby along with me! I'm not even Kira!"

Misa hugged her arms around her stomach protectively, her shoulders jerking from the intensity of her sobbing. L didn't like seeing her like this but he had no choice. He couldn't give in to his emotions for her just yet, he had to see this thing through. It was the only way to help her, himself, and the investigation. If she talked, which she would undoubtedly do if it meant saving their child, then everything would fall into place. He only needed to push her to do so. He saw her there trembling on the floor, with her hands on their unborn child. All she ever wanted to do was protect that little one. '_She'll be a great mother' _He thought.

"There's really nothing you can do?" She asked weakly.

L shook his head and reached a hand out to caress her damp cheek. She accepted his touch and hugged him, bringing him forward toward her. He hugged her back, and buried his face in her hair. He breathed in her scent, sincerely wishing that she were hugging him under different circumstances.

Ide watched the two closely. He wasn't as attached to Misa as the other KIT members but he couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. Of course he knew L was lying to her to make her think she had no other choice but to confess everything. It was a brilliant plan, and only the great detective could carry out such dubiousness with such finesse, especially against someone so close to him. Ide found it astounding how perfectly detached from his emotions L could be. Or perhaps he was not detached, but he simply had mastered them in a way that most people never could.

L hugged Misa for a long time and let her cry her sorrows to him. He felt Misa's breath become more rugged and her body shook harder with it, alerting him that he was pushing her very far with this lie. He knew then that, he needed to stop. He released Misa and stood up, facing away from her. She looked desolate.

"There's something you can do to save yourself. You said you wanted to defend yourself, correct?" He asked, still not looking at her.

She quickly replied, daring to hope.

"Yes! Yes, I want to explain everything. Please..." She said frantically trying to control her sobbing.

"So you want to talk about the Kira case now?" He asked.

"Yes, I'll tell you everything..." She responded. "...although I'm not sure if it'll help me or hurt me more..."

She lost it once again and L gave her some time to compose herself. He'd done it, he was going to get her confession. L turned around to face her once again.

"Ide, thank you. You can leave us now" He told the police officer.

Once Ide left, L knelt down beside Misa and patiently waited for her to start. After a few sharp intakes of air, she calmed down and began to talk.

-_In the main investigation room-_

Ide came down to rejoin the rest of the KIT members. The group became silent when they saw their comrade return alone.

"Well? What happened? What's he doing to her?" They asked him at once. Ide pulled up a chair by them and sat down, uncomfortable with the intense looks everyone was giving him.

"He did it. She's talking and out of her own free will too, no torture or anything...well in the traditional sense." He said. Everyone asked how he did it.

"He pretty much told her he was gonna kill her and their baby if she didn't talk" Said Ide, hoping everyone would leave him be. They gasped.

"He did what?!" Yelled Aizawa. "He's an monster..."

"Poor Misa" Lamented Matsuda.

"You know L. He doesn't play around and he'll do whatever it takes to get the job done. We should all learn from him" Added Chief Yagami. He was usually the only one who understood L's actions. They all looked at him surprised by what he'd just said. "If you think about it, he's actually saving her life. If she doesn't confess then the ICPO will just assume her guilty and probably execute her without a second thought. However, if she cooperates with the investigation, they might be more lenient. I think L wants that."

They all let that realization sink in. After a short debate, they all came to agree with the Chief. However, Aizawa was even more outraged than before.

"Then why the hell didn't he say that?! He's a terrible communicator and he never tells us anything straight! That's what I don't like about him" He said as he crossed his arms and sat back at his desk. The rest shrugged and went back to their desks before L returned. They turned on the news again and saw that in the past half hour, another 54 victims had been executed.

..._Meanwhile elsewhere..._

Kiyomi had never seen Light so agitated. She was surprised to see him at her apartment, but his demeanor soon told her that he wasn't there for pleasure.

"Light! I-"

"Call Mikami. Now." He told her, pushing past her. She was recently out of the shower, and in nothing but a towel. "Did you not hear me? Move, Kiyomi! Call him now!"

She quickly grabbed her phone, alarmed and wondering what was going on. As soon as she dialed Mikami's number, Light swiped the phone right out of her hands and put it to his ear. A clear male voice answered and Light knew it was him. "Mikami..."

There was a loud gasp on the other end of the line.

"God!" Said Mikami

"Why have you been acting on your own?"

"Because...because I thought you were not in a position to move. It had been a while since I sent the notebook to that man Higuchi and no executions had taken place since he died. I reused the Death Note pages by erasing and writing over the names of dead criminals. I was only carrying out your will! Forgive me if I have done wrong!" Said Mikami, apologizing profusely thereafter. Light had to recognize the man's dedication, he himself had not thought to recycle death note pages by erasing over them. He usually burnt them so they could never be found.

"It's too late to do anything about it. Listen to what I'm going to say. We're going to have to kill a lot of people today, and we're going to have to do it very carefully, starting with L."

The two agreed to meet in the same park where Light had first hidden Misa's death note. Once there, they would head over to Headquarters to execute L.

..._Back in headquarters..._

Misa finished telling her side of the story to L. Now he knew everything from the moment that Rem handed her the death note, up to the moment that she gave up ownership of it. He knew about the Shinigami Eyes, her loss of memories after giving up her death note, and Rem's promise to kill Light should he harm her. Misa was quietly wiping away her tears as she dared to glance over at L. He hadn't said anything, or asked anything the whole time that she had been talking. He just sat there, in his favorite position, biting his thumb, looking at her, but at the same time looking through her. She could tell that he was cataloging and deconstructing every bit of information that she'd given him, weighing and measuring and testing for any hint of dishonesty or incongruence.

His silence made her nervous. Misa knew that she had done terrible things and she regretted them dearly. All she hoped for was that this confession allowed her to live, and that L was not completely disgusted by the fact that he was going to have a child with the Second Kira. Not wanting to be a father was one thing but she hoped that he didn't come to hate the child simply because she was its mother. She started fiddling with her nails nervously. His silence was eating away at her.

"L...please don't judge our baby for my mistakes" She blurted out, not able to withstand the silence anymore. He was brought back from his thoughts.

"I was not planning on doing so" He replied. Nothing more was said on the matter but Misa felt relieved. Having no father was bad but having a father that loathed you, especially for something you didn't do was much worse. Her child would be spared from that and that was enough for her. L took a moment to gather his thoughts again and then expressed what had been on his mind all along.

"I believe everything you said, but there are just two things that I don't understand" He said. "First, you did not mention the Third Kira at all. Who is it?"

"The Third Kira? I have no idea who it is. Light never told me, I swear." She said. L bit his thumb again, thinking.

'_So this proves my theory correct. Light and the Third Kira don't communicate directly. Otherwise Third Kira would have known of Misa's capture and kept a low profile'_ He thought. '_Then again, Light could have just told Third Kira to remain inactive as soon as Misa was captured to maintain the illusion that she is Kira. Why would Light refrain from doing so? Perhaps he didn't think it would be necessary. Perhaps, these are the only two death notes and without a death note of his own, Third Kira would not be able to murder. But then, how did he start killing again? Perhaps he'd saved pages for himself...that must be it.'_

L figured that whomever Third Kira was, he must be someone with a profile that is very similar to Light's, someone with a very strong sense of justice and an imagined divine calling to impart that justice on others. One of the profiles he'd reviewed came to mind: Teru Mikami. He would have to revisit that one as soon as he was done here. Yet, he also could not ignore the remaining 2,250 potential Third Kira suspects. He still had to power through those, just in case he was wrong about Mikami.

"Makes sense." He said. Misa could practically see the wheels turning inside his head and a small smile came to her lips. How she loved him. After all he'd done to her, she still wanted to help him. It was then that an idea came to her. She seriously wondered if L would trust her enough to go with it. He knew that she couldn't see his name because she no longer had the Shinigami eyes, but he might still be hesitant to do what she was about to ask of him.

"I think I can help you find the Third Kira." She said, grabbing his attention. "But I will need you to let me hold my original death note..."

"Out of the question" He said dismissively. She got angry.

"Why?! This is the only time I get to make a case for myself and I can help! Not only that but I can give you a very powerful informant, probably more useful than me. Please!"

L was curious. Could she be talking about the Shinigami? That brought him to his second point that he wanted to bring up.

"Where are the Shinigami you spoke of? According to you, they should be visible to any human that comes into contact with a death note. I have two. Yet I have not seen them"

Misa's face contorted in confusion. "That's...very strange..." She said. "If you give me my old death note, I'm positive that Rem will come!" She declared with conviction. L considered it carefully. If the Shinigami Rem knew the identity of the Third Kira, then that would save him a lot of time as well as provide him with yet another rich fountain of information. He decided he would allow it. L carefully reached inside his shirt and Misa watched him closely as he did so. He had both death notes strapped to his body to keep them safe at all times. He pulled out the one she had described, and slowly gave it to her.

..._outside Headquarters..._

Light sat on a bench pretending to take a break and read a book. He'd met with Mikami and it was time to launch his plan. Today, he would kill L and everyone else on task force if necessary. As he pretended to mouth the words inside the book, he secretly called the Shinigami to him. Rem and Ryuk appeared.

"L hid away the death notes. I don't know where they are but I need them. Find them and make sure he doesn't see you." He whispered. Neither Shinigami moved. Light rolled his eyes and sighed. '_You just can't find good help these days'  
_

"Ryuk, I will give you a bag of apples if you find where L hid the death notes" He said, and with that, Ryuk happily floated off to do Light's bidding. Rem stayed put, which did not surprise him. Light didn't even bother to try to bribe her since he knew nothing he offered would work. She was already pissed off enough at him for getting Misa arrested in his place. The brunette closed his book and walked back inside Headquarters. Rem was just about to disappear when she felt a tugging sensation that all Shinigami feel when a human has touched their death note. This tug, however, felt familiar. To confirm Rem's suspicions, she heard a female voice in her head, calling her into Headquarters. "Misa" She said before quickly flying off to her destination.

..._in Misa's apartment.._.

L could not believe his eyes. He'd literally toppled over to the side, wild-eyed and open-mouthed when he saw the white, bony Shinigami materialize through the wall. He knew he shouldn't be afraid of Rem for if she had wanted to kill him, she would have done so a long time ago. Yet the Shinigami appeared to be something straight out a nightmare with her skeletal body, tentacle hair, reptilian eyes and skin as well as other strange features. L simply stared at her, trying to get used to the creature standing before him. Misa, of course, was unfazed. She smiled sadly at the Shinigami and stood up to hug her.

"Thank you for coming Rem. I missed you." She said to the Shinigami. The white creature showed no emotion but she greeted Misa and even told her that she had missed her as well. Misa held Rem's hand and turned toward L, to explain the nature of her relationship with the Shinigami.

"Before all this happened, I didn't have many friends. Out of those few friends, fewer still could be considered genuine. But then Rem came and I can honestly say that she is one of my best, closest friends in this whole world. She loves me you see, and she would do anything for me, even kill anyone who would do me harm" She said as she squeezed Rem's large hand. "It's for this reason that I trust that Rem will help us!"

The Shinigami gave no response, she just continued to look back at L who was straightening himself back up. She remembered how that human hurt her Misa. Sometimes she wanted to kill him, once, she almost did, after she saw what he did with that other blonde woman, Weddy. Rem knew she could kill him with impunity since he did not pose a threat to Misa's life but she did not do it because she knew that Misa loved him, even more deeply than she ever loved Light Yagami. If one could call that love. If Rem did anything to harm L, she knew that Misa would never forgive her and would be forever saddened by his death. Rem narrowed her eyes at him.

"Rem. Light Yagami is Kira and at some point he passed a death note to two other individuals: Kyosuke Higuchi and someone else. Who is that other person?" He asked, getting to the point. Rem did not speak at first but then Misa pleaded with her. It was against the rules for a Shinigami to reveal the identities of other humans who formally or currently possessed a death note. However, Misa gave her that pleading look and she relented.

"Very well. That person was a man named Teru Mikami. He was given Light's death note for some time and it was he who then sent it to Higuchi. He and Light Yagami figured out a trick with the death note to kill someone without directly writing their name and Higuchi was the pawn. However, his plan failed. Mikami kept pages of the death note and that is how he has continued to kill." Misa hugged Rem again and thanked her. L was expressionless as he realized that he had been right about suspecting Teru Mikami. He rose to his feet.

"And does Teru Mikami have the Shinigami Eyes?" He asked. Rem affirmed that he did.

"Thank you for this information. I have one more question though. Why did neither you nor the other Shinigami appear when I picked up the death notes?"

"We were not obligated to follow you because you're not the real owner of the death notes. Light is, so we are to remain bound to him until the death note officially passes to someone else."

"You mean that by killing Light using one of the death notes, I will officially become their new owner."

"Yes, that is how it works...though I do not recommend it. Once you do that, Ryuk will make a deal with you to kill you when he gets bored with you. It is a deal he made with Light and you will inherit that deal if you kill him"

"I don't care about that" He responded. Misa frowned, not liking this.

"Why not?" Misa asked, interjecting.=

"Because I'm planning to write my own name in the death note" He said simply.

"_what?!" _She squealed, sickened by his revelation. She released Rem's hand and stepped toward him, her worried hazel eyes boring into his dark gray ones.

"Yes. I will write my name in the death note before Light gets a chance to do it" He explained.

"No! You'll die!"

"Precisely, but I will get to choose when I die. I will allot myself the maximum 23 days to live that the notebook allows. By then I should be able to prove beyond doubt that Light is Kira." He stated. Misa looked at him incredulously as he did it again. He was breaking her heart once more, it was almost effortless to him.

"Is that all you care about? Catching Kira? Don't you care about me, or Watari, or any of us who give a shit about whether you live or die?!" She said, getting emotional. She started tearing up again, her face getting red in a mixture of sadness and anger.

"Well?! You really think you can just decide to go and die? You're a selfish jerk who doesn't care about how I feel!" She said. She waited for a response, but again, none was given. L did not look her in the eyes as he walked past her toward the door. Misa went after him.

"You know what?! I don't even know why I bother with you! I must be dumbest chick on the planet to still want you even after you used me for sex and then told me that I'm 'not your type.'" She said, walking briskly behind him. Her words cut through L like a knife but instead of turning around and apologizing, he simply kept walking. Before he could open the door, Misa blocked it with her body.

"I didn't use you for sex..." He told her truthfully. "Please step aside"

"So what did you do? Just got off on me, and then said 'oops! I guess I don't really like her that much and now I'm going to die to catch Kira and leave her alone with a kid!'"

"Misa, it's not like that. You know as well as I do, you and the child will be well provided for, now will you please step aside so that I can go back-"

"I want you to know that I will never, _ever_, forgive you for this or for what you did. You're despicable" She said, her voice cracking. He could tell that it hurt her more to say those words than it hurt him to hear them. With that, she stepped aside, opened the door briskly and shoved him out of her apartment, throwing the door closed behind him.

* * *

**Writer's Note: **_Now, you all probably want to smack L at this point (or me) and I totally get that haha. Bear with me just a little longer. Our panda boy will get better at this...eventually. Don't forget to review and until next time!_


	20. Checkmate I

**Writer's Note: **_Hello readers! Welcome back and thank you all again for all your lovely comments. I really appreciate them. I want to remind you guys that I'm fully committed to finishing this story, I won't leave you guys hanging (I promise haha). Without further disruption, I present you guys with Chapter 20!_

* * *

Teru Mikami sat at a bus stop across from Headquarters. His expression was stoic but on the inside, he was giddy with anticipation. Today, a great victory will be won for justice. He did not know much about this L but he did know that he was an obstacle in the creation of the new world. L wanted to put his god to death so that criminals may live and walk freely among the innocent, unpunished. The way he saw it, someone like that is misguided, evil, has no place in the new world, and must be purged from it. As Mikami pretended to read a newspaper, he caught a glimpse of Light closing the book he had been reading, indicating that it was almost time to make his move. All he had to do now was wait for the unmistakable signal.

Light stood and prepared to retreat back into headquarters. As he did so, a car abruptly screeched to a halt in front of him. It was Takada. Light gave her a bewildered look, scanning his surroundings to make sure no one was watching. Once he determined the coast was clear, he climbed into the car's passenger seat. Mikami found this strange as this was not part of the plan…

"Kiyomi, are you crazy?! What are you doing here?!" Hissed Light as she drove around the corner. "If someone sees you, it will draw attention to me. Go home"

"No! I won't let you do this alone. I want to be here with you, helping you" She said, not taking her eyes off the road.

"Do you realize you're jeopardizing _everything_?!"

"Light, please understand. For a long time all I've wanted was to be by your side when you became god of the new world. That starts today, once you dispose of L and I intend to be here with you" She said, stopping in front of a desolate parking garage.

"You will be but this is a delicate plan and I can't afford any distractions. Go home, Kiyomi. Please."

She shook her head, refusing to leave. Though she would not admit this to him, she was also jealous of Mikami for being able to play a direct role in Light's plans whereas she was simply told to stay home. She was Light's right hand accomplice before Mikami. It wasn't fair that he should treat her as a liability rather than an asset. Light sighed impatiently, realizing that no amount of chastising would dissuade her. He turned to Kiyomi, took her chin in his hands and kissed her.

When he broke the kiss he told her "Fine, but stay outside. If we need help getting away you will be our escape"

She didn't seem satisfied. Just before she could protest, however, Light softened her up with yet another passionate kiss, and she relented.

"Alright…I'll do that" She said, disappointed. With that, she drove Light back to headquarters. Mikami watched as Light stepped out of the car, and Kiyomi took off, parking just around the corner. Then Light went inside, and it all began.

…_inside Headquarters…_

The Kira murders had finally dwindled down. Between reviewing the massive wave of murders and locating the Third Kira, the KIT members had their hands full.

Chief Yagami approached L, who was crouched in his chair, stirring a cup of extra strong black coffee. "Ryuzaki, I just spoke with Deputy Director Kitamura. He has given us the go-ahead to arrest Teru Mikami as the primary Third Kira suspect. All you have to do is give the order."

"Perfect. Thank you Mr. Yagami." Said L. He looked around the main investigation room. "Where is Light?" He asked.

"Eh, I'm not entirely sure. He seemed to have left without explanation a while ago" Said the chief, slightly embarrassed. "I will call him back. He should be here right now."

"That's alright. Please hold off on that, I'm sure Light had his reasons for leaving" Said L. '_If Mikami acted of his own accord, then Light must be dealing with him at this very moment. If we call him now and alert him to our plans to arrest Mikami, we lose our advantage. It would be in our best interest to capture Light with Mikami. Their association, along with all the other evidence against him, will further prove that Light is Kira" _Thought L, sipping his coffee.

"Also, I would like everyone to remain silent about Teru Mikami being the Third Kira. I don't want Light to know just yet" He said, calmly. But it was too late.

"Know what?" Asked Light, walking into the main investigation room just in time to overhear that last statement. L was annoyed at Light's unfortunate timing, which ruined his plan of catching him while he was still with Mikami. The other KIT members shared awkward looks, not knowing what to do or say. There was an uncomfortable silence as Light and L stared each other down. There had always been some tension between the two best and brightest of the KIT but ever since Misa's capture, the tension had been mounting to the point where something had to give. They all speculated that soon, L and Light would no longer be able to work with each other, or even be in the same room together.

Light narrowed his eyes at L, waiting for an answer. L did not disappoint.

"Teru Mikami is the Third Kira. We will be arresting him and bringing him here for questioning shortly" Said the raven-haired man. '_It's a shame you're no longer with him. It would have been so convenient to catch you red-handed with the Third Kira...'_

Light showed no emotion. He was not the least bit surprised that in his absence, L had managed to figure out that Mikami was the Third Kira. Perhaps Misa told him everything, or perhaps he decided upon Mikami based on his profile. It did not matter anymore. L was going to die today and he would be free to do as he wished.

Light looked directly into L's eyes. This would be the last time he saw that penetrating gaze that secretly accused him of being Kira. At that moment, Light yearned to smirk and spit the truth in L's face, to tell him that he's Kira. Oh yes, he would enjoy seeing the expression on L's face as he dies knowing that he had been right all along but unable to prove it. He wanted L to die knowing that he had come so close to the truth, only to fail.

"That's great news. Everything is falling into place, isn't it?" Said Light.

"It is." Responded L.

"That's a relief."

"I concur."

"As expected."

"As expected of a winner." Said L, determined to have the final say.

'_Claiming victory prematurely, L. I will enjoy watching you die' _Thought Light.

The two just staid there as though one were challenging the other to do his worst. Chief Yagami cleared his throat, breaking their intense stares.

"Well, boys, what do you say we pay Mr. Mikami a visit? We can rally with Director Kitamura's forces at the station" Announced the Chief.

"Actually, Mr. Yagami I believe you should be just fine with Ide or Mogi. The rest can stay here and monitor things. We do not want to draw too much attention by sending such an obviously large police force to arrest Mikami." Said L, turning back to his coffee. The chief agreed, and took Ide with him. Light watched his father exit the main investigation room, thankful that he would not be there to witness or interfere with what was about to happen.

Light excused himself and exited the main investigation room as well. '_This is goodbye L.' _Thought Light as he headed in the direction of the bathroom.

Once inside, Light leaned against the bathroom door, waiting for the right time. One minute passed. Then two. After all was said and done, Light had to admit that it was nice knowing that there was someone out there that could challenge him the way L did. He would never forget him, but the fact was that there was no room in the new world for both of them. So L had to go. Light looked at his watch again. Another minute had passed. He was right on schedule. He exited the bathroom, carefully avoiding the view of the cameras. He entered a seemingly deserted hallway where there was no surveillance. At the end of the hallway there was an electronic door that opened only through hand recognition. If he had calculated correctly, Watari should be emerging from that room to fetch L some evening sweets as usual. The old man had a predictable schedule so it was easy for Light to anticipate his movements.

Light approached the door that led to whatever control room Watari was in. He pressed his back against the wall right by the door, making himself as small and unnoticeable as possible. If this was going to work, he needed to catch Watari by surprise, before he pressed the emergency button on his belt. A bead of sweat ran down Light's forehead, and he swallowed nervously. This was not how he did things, but desperate times called for desperate measures. If L did not die today then Mikami would be caught, questioned, and probably tortured into giving him away. He closed his eyes and controlled his breathing. A moment later, Light felt the door click and open. Watari walked out and saw him.

"Light-?"

Before Watari could finish his thought, Light tackled him to the wall and punched him in the stomach. Watari grunted and grimaced in pain as he held Light firmly by his shirt collar. The old man had more fight in him than Light originally anticipated. He was strong and Light was having difficulty keeping him down. He noticed Watari was trying to reach for the emergency button on his belt so Light wrestled him off the wall and threw him on the floor. Watari began to yell but Light was soon on him with his knee on Watari's chest, and his hands choking him. Watari grabbed at Light's eyes and delivered a painful punch to his face, but Light simply took it and applied more force to Watari's neck. The old man gagged, struggling to breathe as he pried Light's hands off his neck. It was no use. He tried his best to yell but he couldn't. Fear gripped Watari as he looked wide-eyed at Light's face, which looked possessed. He made one last attempt to knock off Light by bucking him off to the side with all the strength he could muster. Light panicked as he nearly went flying off but he held on, and banged Watari's head on the floor repeatedly, knocking him out cold. Once he felt the old man go limp, Light took his hands off his neck and checked for his breathing.

Watari was alive. The brunette was panting as he looked around, wild-eyed, hoping that no one heard the struggle. Luckily the door to the control room was still open. He dragged Watari's body into the room, removed his belt and bound his hands behind his back. He also tied his tie around the old man's mouth. He knew Watari was probably not going to wake up any time soon, but if he did, he needed to keep him busy until L was dead.

"Ryuk!" Called Light. The Shinigami was right behind him in a heartbeat. Ryuk cackled as he saw Watari passed out on the floor, gagged and with his hands bound.

"That was quite the struggle" Said the Shinigami laughing. "For a second there, I thought he had you, Light. I was rooting for you, of course, since you still owe me apples."

"Only if you found the notebooks. Where are they?"

"I found them alright, but good luck getting them. They're in an air-tight chamber below this room, in a safe within another safe. Oh, and you need codes and fancy things to get in there. It must not be very fun to try to force your way in he he"

"I wasn't planning on it. That room and those safes are electronic you said?" Asked Light.

"Yeah, I believe so"

"Perfect. Now go keep watch for Mikami at the main entrance"

Ryuk sighed and left, daydreaming of the number of apples that he would eat later. Light watched him take off and then glanced down at his watch. He sat down in Watari's chair and looked at all the buttons on the keyboard in front of him. He pressed the "on" button for the largest screen and he found himself looking down at an unsuspecting L, sitting at his desk, stacking sugar cubes. Light smirked. Maybe he would get to have front seats to L's death after all.

He turned back to the keyboard and typed a few commands on it. It took him a few minutes, but eventually Light found what he was looking for. The building's power generators were controlled from this work station, just as he'd hoped. Light brought the power output to maximum and beyond.

'_If I can't get the security codes, then I will simply have to disable the security system. Time for a little power outage...'_

_...In Misa's Apartment..._

Rem watched Misa walk from one end of the room to the other for what seemed like the 20th time. Misa could not stop pacing back and forth. The word anxious did not even do justice to the flurry of thoughts and emotions going through her at that moment. She had already bitten her finger nails down to painful stumps, her journal was no where to be found, and besides Rem, she had no other outlets to help her cope with any of her stress. She looked at the Shinigami and sighed.

"I can't stand this anymore! I need to know what's going on!" She said, throwing her hands up in frustration.

"Are you sure you don't want me to kill L?" Rem asked. Misa shook her head.

"No Rem, if you kill him, every suspicion will fall on me and then I'll be sentenced to death for sure!" She said, placing a hand on her stomach. "L may be an asshole but...he's important to me. I don't want him to die." She said sadly.

Rem stayed silent, admiring how far Misa had come from the days when she swooned over Light Yagami. In those days, Misa had even asked Rem to kill L so that she could be with Light. It seemed like ages ago. Rem did not show it, but it pleased her to see Misa had become stronger than that. She still did not like L, but he was better than Light. And he was trying to help Misa.

"Oh! I know! Why don't you go fly down there and tell me what's happening?" Misa suggested. Rem didn't want to leave her like this, but if that's what she wanted, then so be it. The Shinigami nodded and vanished through the nearest wall.

Misa watched her go. She stopped her pacing, remembering Dr. Rita's advice to avoid stress for the sake of the baby.

"I should really lay on my bed and calm down..." She sighed. Misa went to her bedroom and fell backwards onto her mattress. As she did, all the lights became annoyingly bright. She sat up on the bed, squinting to block out the brightness. "What the...?" She said out loud. The lights flickered and flashed blindingly bright until finally, they all popped, making everything dark. Then a huge explosion went off.

"AAAHHHHH!" She screamed as she fell back onto the bed. She covered her head as the whole building shook. Pieces of plaster fell off the ceiling and she heard decorations and other things throughout the apartment falling and breaking in the aftershock. Misa rolled off her bed and crawled out to the bathroom where she knew things were less likely to shift out of place. Then another big explosion happened. Misa screamed again. "WHAT IS THIS?!" She yelled. As she crawled, she felt a crunch under her hand, and pain, as though needles were poking her hand.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" She cursed. She was frightened and wincing in pain as she continued to crawl into the bathroom. Another large piece of plaster fell right over her, but before it could break on Misa's head, Rem shielded her.

"Misa, are you alright?!" Yelled Rem.

"Yeah! I think so! I think I cut my hand on glass. What the hell is going on?! Is someone blowing up the whole building?!" She asked frantically.

"Light Yagami did this somehow. I don't know what he's up to but it is not good."

Misa held her injured hand on her lap as she gently ran her other hand over it. The darkness was making it near impossible to determine the extent of her injury. With her good hand, she felt wetness as well as sharp little objects jutting out of her hand. The wetness must be blood. "Yep, it's glass alright..." She determined, leaving her hand alone for the time being. She felt her baby give sharp kicks to her stomach as though it required her immediate attention. Misa patted her stomach with her good hand.

"It's ok, baby. We're ok!" She said. Luckily, the emergency lights came on, casting everything in a red glow. Better than being in complete darkness.

Misa looked around at the devastation around her apartment. It wasn't too terrible but there was a lot of debris and dust clouding the air, and a lot of things had fallen onto the floor. She inspected her hand and was glad to see that it wasn't too badly cut up either. She looked up and heard a voice over the intercom. It was L.

"Misa! Can you hear me?" The voice asked.

"Yes!" She responded.

"Are you hurt?" He asked.

"Not really. I cut my hand on glass but that's about it! Rem is with me"

There was silence over the intercom. Down in the main investigation room, L sighed, relieved to know that Misa was Ok. He feared the worst when the power generators exploded. The generators were on the rooftop above the 23rd floor of Headquarters. Misa's penthouse was on the 16th floor so she would have felt the explosion worse than he and the others did on the first floor. Currently they were on the emergency power supply which provided limited lighting as well as limited power to the communication system throughout the building.

"Hey Ryuzaki! We're going to check out the damage!" yelled the others as they ran up the stairs to the 23rd floor.

"No! Don't all go." Yelled L, but it was too late. They had all disappeared._ '__There's something very wrong here. Where are Light and Watari?'_

"Hey! Are you still there?!" asked Misa's voice over L's speakers.

"Yes, Misa, I'm here. Whatever you do, stay there." He told her as he hung up on her.

Back in her apartment, Misa stood up slowly, calling for L's voice on the intercom.

"L?! Are you there?! HELLO!"

There was no response.

"Ugh! Is that really all he's gonna say to me, "are you ok?" I want to know if he's OK too!" She complained. She sighed and slumped back down on the floor, looking at Rem. "That's typical L for you! Always leaves me questioning..."

..._Back in Watari's main control room...  
_

Light could not have hoped for anything better. With the power generators blown and unable to supply electricity to the security system, retrieving the death notes was a piece of cake. Light now held both of them in his hands. He made sure that Watari was safely knocked out before exiting the room and meeting up with Mikami.

Mikami entered the building exactly 5 minutes after the explosion occurred, just as his god had instructed him to do. He could still hear Light's voice in his head, telling him step by step what to do. '_Teru__, a__s soon as you enter the building, look into the room straight ahead. L should be there, alone. Next look for Ryuk. He will guide you to me. I will give you the death note and then you will go back to the main investigation room. You know what to do from there.'_

Mikami found Ryuk and followed him to a deserted hallway. Light stood at the end of that hallway, with his arm extended, as if welcoming him. He had a death note just for him in his hands. Mikami was elated.

"God! Everything is going as planned! The main investigation room is deserted except for L. All the police officers are gone!"

"Yes. I wanted them to leave. If they're not there to stop you from killing L, then I can spare them. They're innocents and should be spared from judgment. L is the one that has to die. " Said Light.

'Yes! I will do it. I'm honored to be the one to do it. Thank you!" Said Mikami, taking the death note from Light and running back to the main entrance. Light followed shortly thereafter. He wanted to be there in L's last moment.

Back in the main investigation room, L was frantically attempting to connect with Watari's intercom.

"Watari, are you there? Are you alright?" He asked. There was no response. "Watari, can you hear me?"

Again, L waited for a response, but there was none. He was getting worried. Was Watari hurt? Was he trapped under some debris? He needed to know.

"Watari, hold on. I'm coming to you" He said, getting up from his chair. As he got up and turned to leave, he was faced with a man he'd only seen in pictures before. Teru Mikami.

'_oh...well this is definitely not good.' _He thought as he stared at the Third Kira. L saw that the man had small black notebook in his hands, a death note. Mikami simply looked at him with a wicked, deranged, smile on his face. He saw the red letters and numbers floating above L's head. Light was standing right behind the door, watching everything transpire. Oh how he dreamed and waited for this moment. He could barely control the urge to laugh out loud and proclaim his victory over L. In only a few moments, his true reign as Kira would begin.

'_Go on Mikami, write his name down. __I'll reveal myself right when he's about to die' _Thought Light, smirking.

"Your name! It is L Lawliet!" Announced Mikami. "L Lawliet, your misguided ideals and crimes against Kira make you unfit to live in the new world, and so you must be deleted! In the name of the new god Kira, I will delete your existence!"

"Are you done?" Asked L, after a brief pause. Mikami looked at him confused.

"W-What?"

"I asked if you were done giving me your sermon." Explained L. Mikami looked outraged. "You're too late you know. We've already dispatched a police force to arrest you, Teru Mikami. No matter what happens to me now, you're going to be tried and most likely executed. But I didn't need to tell you that, I'm sure. You're an attorney. You understand how this process works. You must also know that if you surrender now and give up Kira, I promise that I will do everything in my extensive power to protect you. You have my word." Said L.

There was moment of silence, during which Mikami pretended to consider it. L watched him closely until Mikami started laughing and said "You are not my god. I don't care about your powers with the police. I only believe in Kira and the new world!"

L was fascinated. He knew that the Third Kira would be someone with a similar mindset to Light's, but Mikami exceeded every one of his expectations. He was now convinced that Teru Mikami was actually far worse, and even more dangerous than Light. The man was a complete lunatic who actually believed in Kira as a god and in Kira's rule as some sort of perfect divine doctrine. It was fanaticism like his that caused wars, massacres, and genocides. There was no doubt in L's mind that if there was someone who deserved to be 'deleted' from this world, it was Mikami.

"Think about it, Teru. You have a chance to live if you put that notebook down and come peacefully. If you kill me, you'll only make things worse for yourself" Reasoned L.

'_What is happening? Mikami, write his damn name in the notebook already!' _Light thought impatiently.

Right then, Mikami took out a pen, opened the notebook on the floor and just as he was about to write the name, he stopped. Light looked on in anticipation. However, Mikami just sat there, frozen with his pen hovering over the notebook page. Whatever he saw in the page of the death note had disturbed Mikami, as was evident by his horrified expression.

'_What's the matter with him?! Why won't he write L's name down?!'_ Light asked himself, getting angry. At this rate the KIT members would return from upstairs and catch them in the act. L looked at the flabbergasted Third Kira with a bored expression.

"I already told you, you are too late. Not just to save yourself, but to kill me." Said L.

"What the fuck is going on with you Mikami?! Write his name down! Now!" Hissed Light from behind the door.

Mikami turned around slowly, his eyes wide and his hands unsteady as he held the notebook up.

"But God...he's already dead!" Said Mikami.


	21. Checkmate II

**Writer's Note: **_Hello faithful readers. Thank you for your lovely comments, and thank you also to those who've favorited/followed my story. I'm really excited for what's to come in this story so I'll get right to it. Please don't forget to review and I'm looking forward to reading what you guys think!_

* * *

Mikami looked like he was about to panic. Whatever it was that he saw written in that notebook had sent him off kilter.

"I-I can't delete him...I can't delete him, God. Have I failed? Did we fail?" He asked. "What should I do? What should I do? GOD, TELL ME WHAT TO DO!" He yelled as he ran to Light, swinging the door open and revealing him to L. Light was shocked by Mikami's actions. He couldn't speak at first, as he gaped at L who was looking at him with a guarded expression. Of course, the detective wasn't the least bit surprised to see Light standing there. He'd always known deep down that Light was Kira.

"What is wrong with you?!" Yelled Light at Mikami, snapping out of his initial shock. Mikami teared up as he held the notebook out to Light with shaky hands. The notebook read '_L Lawliet, dies peacefully while eating a strawberry covered cheesecake in exactly 23 days'_

Light let out a sarcastic laugh and looked at Mikami.

"He planned this. He killed himself, but in 23 days." He turned to L and sneered. "You son of a bitch. I know why you did this. You wanted to take my victory away from me."

"Precisely." Confirmed L. He held up a finger and pretended to shoot Light. "Bang. You're going to die before I do. I will see to it that you're tried and executed before my time expires, _Kira_. And since you don't get to construct your precious 'new world,' or kill me, I guess this means that I win?" Said the detective innocently.

Light was fuming. He was angry enough to want to kill L with his bare hands.

"Don't be so smug, _Lawliet. _You've accomplished nothing with this. In fact, you've just killed the whole investigation team!" Said Light angrily, clutching Mikami's death note.

"How so?" Asked L.

"I intended to let the Kira task force members live, since without you, they would have no way of knowing that I'm Kira. You were supposed to be dead by now. However, now that you're going to be alive for another 23 days, you'll just tell them everything that happened here. I have to kill them, you see, and it's all because of you."

"Do you understand that killing more innocent people will only make you look worse at your trial?" Asked L.

"And do _you_ understand that there won't _be_ a trial?" Said Light, giving him a fake smile. "You insult my intelligence if you think that I'm going to let you walk out of here and tell the whole world that I'm Kira. No, L, you're going to be my prisoner until you die. And don't even think that I'm going to let you have that cake!" Said the brunette menacingly. He picked up Mikami's pen and calmly began to write the names of every KIT member, with the exception of his father. He didn't want to have to kill the rest of task force, but L left him no choice. It had to be done.

Light finished writing all the names and he couldn't help but feel disgusted. He wanted to hurt L so badly. Light turned to Mikami and said "Grab him. And be careful. He kicks."

L looked from Mikami to Light as the two approached him. He knew he could take on one, but two may not be as feasible. He saw Light move off to the side and grab something from one of the police officer's desks. Light turned to L with a malicious grin and dangled the object in front of him. L recognized the object immediately.

"Do you remember these?" He asked the detective as he showed him the chains that they'd once shared...

_...In Misa's apartment..._

Misa finally managed to get all the glass shards out of her hand. She found gauze and patched it up, ignoring the blood that seeped into the material, turning it red. She had a determined look about her as she carefully walked around the many fallen objects in her apartment. She made her way toward the door and was surprised to see that it was hanging open.

"Misa, where are you going? Remember that L said to stay here." Warned Rem.

"I know! But I can't just sit here waiting, not knowing what's going on! I'm going downstairs to warn him about Light" She declared as she pushed the door open, exiting into the darkened hallway.

..._Outside of Headquarters..._

Kiyomi checked her watch yet again. She was worried sick about Light.

'_They should have been out by now. Something is happening' _She thought anxiously. She continued to look at the seconds tick on her watch. As she did so, she imagined all the things that could be happening to Light right at that instant. The wait was killing her. She needed to do something. Without giving it another thought, she got out of her car and walked toward headquarters. The main entrance door was open, and the security system was disabled, just as Light had predicted. She didn't know the layout of the place or where to go, so she first checked the room that was straight ahead. She poked her head in the door and looked inside.

Light and Mikami were huddled, struggling to hold L down on a chair. L held his ground as he leaned against his chair, ready to kick the first person to come at him. Mikami made the bold move and flung himself at L, receiving a powerful kick to the face. He recovered quickly from the blow and threw himself at L once more, while Light did the same. L squirmed as much as he could and climbed over the two men, but not before finding himself attached to Light once more. He looked at his wrist and saw that they had managed to cuff him. Mikami stepped back, nursing a bloody nose while Light looked at L triumphantly.

"You're coming with us now" Said Light. L knew that if he left headquarters, it would all be over for him. He needed to buy time until the rest of the KIT forces came down. He could do it, after all, Light was certain that he had just killed all of them and would not be expecting it. Light began tugging on the chain, but not in the direction of the main door. Instead, he was going in the direction of the stairs.

"Where are we going?" Asked L, refusing to move.

"To get Misa. We are not leaving her here to testify against me." Said Light. "Besides, she's Kira and she just killed all of task force, it makes sense that she would have escaped." He added with a smirk. "That is what my father will conclude when he returns. We have to make it look believable."

L still refused to move, not liking this. "What do you plan to do with her?" he asked.

Light thought for a moment as a twisted idea formed in his mind.

"You know, Lawliet, you are going to be in for a treat these 23 days. You will get to watch as I take everything from you, Misa, your bastard, and your life." He said. As punishment for foiling his plan, Light wanted to make L's last days as miserable as possible.

Just outside the main investigation room, another pair of ears listened intently. Kiyomi frowned as she heard what Light said. She didn't like the fact that Misa was going to remain a part of their lives. If it were up to her, she would have killed her already.

L tensed up, but his face remained unchanged. Light decided to probe a little deeper.

"Oh yes, you will get to watch as I take your precious Misa for myself night after night. I'll screw her well until you're nothing but a sad, pathetic memory in her mind. She'll come back to me, you'll see."

L narrowed his eyes at Light. "Misa would never allow that"

Light laughed derisively.

"Oh and you think I'm going to ASK for her permission? I have leverage. Once you're dead, I'll be the only one who can truly protect her from the police. She'll be blamed for everything that's happened today so she'll have no other choice but to accept me. Also...you won't be here to see this, but I'm thinking your kid might make a perfect successor to Kira."

"That will never happen" Said L.

"Ha! Misa will do anything for that little bastard child, even submit to my will if it guarantees its safety. It's just such a shame that you won't be alive to see it all unfold...just imagine it, me, Misa, and your bastard, ruling the new world. Mikami will be there too, of course." Said Light, acknowledging Mikami, who beamed at the recognition.

L hated Light so much at that moment. He was strongly considering attacking him, even if it meant getting beat down by Mikami. It would be worth it just for the satisfaction of wiping that smirk off of Light's face.

Meanwhile, Kiyomi had heard enough. She leaned against the wall by the main investigation room, covering her mouth to muffle her sobs. If she hadn't just heard Light say those things, she wouldn't have believed it in a million years.

'_Light__ wants to build the new world...with Misa?! And that baby?!'_ She repeated to herself, outraged and feeling sick to her stomach. '_I...I gave him everything...what about me?!' _She thought as hot tears stung her eyes. She just couldn't accept the fact that after all she'd done for Light, he would not even make room for her in his life, and that at the end of the day, it would be that ungrateful bitch Misa the one who would be by his side. She refused. She would not allow that.

'_Over my dead body will that slut take what's rightfully mine' _She thought as she angrily wiped her eyes free of tears. She pulled out a pocket knife from her purse. With that, she walked down the hall and took the emergency stairs up. Kiyomi would search every floor, every room, every nook and crevice of that building until she found Misa...

Back inside the main investigation room, Light continued to taunt L.

"What's the matter, L? You're not so talkative anymore. Is something wrong?" He asked, feigning concern. L had to bite his tongue to not lash out at Light. How he loathed him right now.

'_Where are Matsuda and the others when you need them?' _Thought L, counting the seconds in his head. It had been just over 20 minutes since they had left. L wondered what was taking them so long.

"You look like you want to say something, L." Said Light with a sickening smile. He came up close to L's face, irritating him. "If you have something to say..._say it_"

L bit his tongue and clenched his jaw. He wasn't going to give Light the satisfaction of getting a rise out of him. Light frowned and turned back toward the stairs, this time forcing L to move.

"Fine, don't say anything. Let's go see Misa, shall we? Maybe she and I will have a quickie in her apartment-"

Just as the words left Light's mouth, L grounded himself and yanked back on the chain roughly.

"I do have something to say. I've been meaning to ask you something for a long time, Kira." He said suddenly. Light was curious.

"Yes?"

"What happened to Naomi Misora?" Asked L firmly. He could already guess what became of his ex-girlfriend. That she was dead was almost an absolute certainty, but he needed to burn more time.

_...Somewhere on the second floor of HQ..._

Kiyomi had just finished checking the second floor but no Misa. Just as she was about to enter the emergency staircase to go up to the third floor, she heard careful steps coming down the main staircase. She staid still for a second, listening. She heard an unmistakable female voice whispering and hid her blade behind her back.

"I'm fine, Rem, just go ahead. Come back when you know what's happening with the others"

Kiyomi walked toward the main staircase and stopped. She looked up and her eyes shone as they fell upon her target.

"Misa" She said with disgust. Misa froze at the top of the stairs.

"Takada" The blonde responded with equal displeasure. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"I'm here with Light." She said smugly.

"Good for you." Said Misa with a fake smile. She quickly dropped the smile and continued to walk down the stairs. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere important to be and I don't have time for you"

Just as Misa was about to pass by, Kiyomi intercepted her path, causing Misa to glare daggers at her.

"_Excuse _me."

Kiyomi eyed Misa from top to bottom and began to chuckle maliciously.

"What's so funny?"

"Misa, you've gotten fat" Said Kiyomi, patting Misa's stomach. Misa moved back, not liking the touch. She was outraged as no one had ever told her that in her life.

"I'm not fat, I'm _pregnant, _something which you will never be since Light doesn't want anyone other than himself." Misa quipped back. "...bitch" She muttered, attempting to walk around Kiyomi. The dark haired woman stuck her arm out, not letting Misa through.

"Takada, let me through or I will-"

"Or you'll what?! What _will _you do, Misa?" Asked Kiyomi, flashing the knife at Misa. Fear quickly replaced Misa's look of contempt and she protected her womb with both her hands.

"Wow, hey now, let's not get too serious here, Kiyomi." Misa said nervously. "If this is about Light, you can keep him. Seriously, I don't care."

"Don't lie to me you two-faced slut! I bet you've been trying to seduce Light all this time and that's why he wants you to be with him!"

"What?! Are you fucking crazy? I want _nothing _to do with Light! I hate him! Please, keep him! I wish you two the best. Seriously!"

"Liar! You're a whore Misa Amane, and you ruined EVERYTHING I had with Light. Do you understand that?!" Yelled Kiyomi, waving the knife violently at Misa.

..._I__n the main investigation room..._

Light was caught off-guard by L's question. '_Naomi Misora...t__hat's the woman that figured out that I could kill with more than just heart attacks...' _Remembered Light.

"Was she important to you?" He asked, genuinely curious. L did not respond.

"She was, wasn't she?" Taunted Light. "Well, if you really want to know what happened. I'll tell you."

L was half-curious and half-worried by what he was about to hear. Though he was long over her, Naomi had been a very important person in his life. She'd taught him to open up to the idea of love and he would never forget that. He would always hold her memory in high esteem. In his heart he only hoped that whatever end she met was swift and painless.

"When I met her, I was going to see my father at the police station. I saw her there talking to the receptionists, trying to get in contact with you. If I recall she was a pretty Japanese woman, with long black hair, doe-like eyes, a nice ass, good tits. Very easy on the eyes, really."

L was not amused by Light's commentary.

"I remember I told her that I knew you and could get her in contact with you. She was cautious at first. We talked for a bit. I must admit that she was a really smart woman. Smart women are such a turn on...anyway, she'd managed to figure out a lot about me, so much so that I almost made the trade for the Shinigami Eyes just to learn her real name. That's how nervous she made me. That and the fact that she had a nice mouth and I could think of a few things that she could do with that mouth, but I digress. I told her I would recommend her for the Kira Task Force. She believed it and gave me her real name. And then she went off somewhere to kill herself in such a way that her body would never be found...it's a shame really. I should have fucked her first-"

Light's words were cut short by a swift punch to the face. L threw himself at Light, knocking him down to the floor. He punched the brunette repeatedly , unleashing his anger, as Light called for Mikami to 'do something.' Immediately, Mikami grabbed L roughly and flung him off of Light and back against his desk.

"I'm going to kill you with my bare hands!" Yelled Light as he attacked L. Light wrestled him down on the desk as Mikami attempted to get a hold of L's legs.

Light was about to punch the daylights out of L when the door at the top of the stairs flung open and through it ran Misa, screaming, with a wild-eyed Kiyomi following right after. Misa half-ran, half-stumbled down stairs as Kiyomi followed after her, swiping at her with a small blade.

The three men froze.

"Misa!" said L.

"Kiyomi!" Said Light.

"What are you doing here? I told you to stay-" yelled Light and L in unison before realizing what they were doing. Light released L roughly and turned toward his girlfriend. Misa crawled awkwardly away from Kiyomi who was now focused on Light. She was trying to avoid putting pressure on her hurt and bloody hand, which L noticed.

"Kiyomi, I told you to stay in the car!"

"Shut up! Don't you talk to me! You _betrayed_ me!" She cried. "You...you traded me, Light, for THAT!" She yelled, throwing her knife at Misa and missing. Light was completely unprepared for this. He stood there utterly outraged by her accusation.

'_What is she talking about?! I gave her more time and attention than I ever gave Misa. Why are women like this?!' _Thought Light.

"I heard what you said!" She said, choking back a sob. She turned to the Third Kira and yelled "Mikami! Kill her! Kill Misa Amane, she doesn't deserve to live!"

Light panicked slightly. If Misa died, Rem would kill him and he could not let that happen. Mikami turned to Light for approval. Light shook his head to say "no", a gesture which threw Kiyomi into a fit of hysterics over his unwillingness to kill Misa. Everyone looked on as she yelled all sorts of insults at Light. Once she had tired herself to the point where she was out of breath, Kiyomi stopped crying. She just stayed there, getting a hold of herself. Light was as still as a statue, in shock. The phrase "hell has no fury like a woman scorned" played over and over in his mind.

Kiyomi wiped her face and marched toward Mikami who looked genuinely afraid of her. He took a step back but she quickly closed the gap between them. She reached him and without warning, she swiped at his eyes with her long finger nails, scratching his cornea. Mikami yelled in pain, and fell doubled over onto the floor. Without batting an eyelash, Kiyomi extracted the death note from his hands. Light snapped out of his trance and ran to stop her, dragging L a few feet. Misa screamed as she saw Kiyomi throwing the notebook down on the floor and scribbling what she could only guess was her name on the notebook.

"KIYOMI NO!" Yelled Light, yanking L further along with him. Kiyomi threw the pen on the floor next to Mikami who was still rolling around from the injury she inflicted on his eyes.

"If you don't have the balls to kill her, then I will." She said bitterly. She stood up and threw the notebook at Light as she marched past him and toward Misa.

"I hope you and your bastard burn in hell." Spat Kiyomi, walking by a distraught Misa. The mother-to-be cradled her head in her hands, and shut her eyes closed, sobbing uncontrollably. Light went pale as he dropped the death note with Misa's name on it. How could this have happened? His whole plan was going so well up until this point. Now Misa was going to die, which meant that Rem was going to kill him, and L was going to die, and everyone else was already dead. The only survivor was Mikami, and even he was going to be caught soon and executed. Light did the only thing he could do in his situation. He laughed at it all. He collapsed onto the floor laughing and repeating that they were all going to die.

"Everyone! We're going to die...we're going to DIE!" He said frantically in between fits of laughter.

Misa was weeping uncontrollably on the floor. L took advantage of Light's breakdown to get closer to her. He knelt down with her.

"Misa, you're not going to die" he whispered. Thanks to Takada his ruse only had about 20 more seconds before it came tumbling down. Misa looked at him confused. He took her hand and guided it to touch something inside his shirt. She felt the notebooks, still strapped to his body. The real ones. Misa took a moment to process everything and then she cried some more but out of relief.

L took her bloodied hand and inspected it. He tenderly ran a finger over it before turning it over and kissing her hand. Misa watched him as he gently placed it down on her lap. Only 10 more seconds before Light realized the death notes were fake. L caressed Misa's damp cheek and whispered in her ear.

"I need a favor from you." He said and he looked at the death note that was on the floor next to Light. She followed his gaze to the death note. She sniffed and nodded, understanding what he wanted.

"L!" Light cried. "I fucking hate you!" He yelled, sitting up and fixing him with a murderous look. L gently pushed Misa aside as Light crawled toward him. He moved back and stood up as Light did the same. L stepped back and the crazed brunette followed until he caught up and grabbed L by the throat. L kicked him painfully in the stomach but Light did not care.

"I'm going to kill you! I refuse to die before you!" Said the brunette through gritted teeth. He hit L's head on the desk just as he did with Watari. Misa screamed but Light did not even notice. Then the double doors at the top of the stairs bust open and in came the rest of the Kira Investigation team.

'_About damn time!' _Thought L, slightly dazed from the blow to his head. He'd never been more relieved to see those guys.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Yelled Matsuda. "Ryuzaki! Light! Misa!"

"That's Teru Mikami!" Said Aizawa, pointing his gun at Mikami. "Arrest him!" He yelled. Matsuda, Ukita, and Mogi moved in to subdue Mikami. Aizawa then turned his attention to Light and L. "Light, drop him!"

Light literally looked as though he were seeing ghosts. He was still holding on to L with shaky hands as he looked around him, with disbelieving eyes. '_But...they're DEAD! I killed them!' _He thought. Yet, he too was alive. Rem did not kill him, which meant that Misa did not die either. Light saw her alive and well and he looked utterly confused.

"But how?!" He yelped. "How are you all still alive?!" He asked. Then he heard Ryuk's bone chilling laugh somewhere over his head. Light looked up and saw both he and Rem, floating above. Ryuk looked positively mischevious. '_What's so funny to him?' _Thought the brunette.

"Light, it looks like you're in quite the pickle" Said Ryuk, chuckling.

"What is happening?! This isn't possible unless..." Light looked pointedly at L. "_you! _You did something!"

L smiled. "I was never a fan of safes. They're usually not so safe." He said still smiling.

Light looked perplexed. And then it dawned on him. Light removed his hands from L's neck and touched his torso. Over L's shirt he could feel something that felt very much like a notebook. His face dropped as he realized then that he had been made a fool. This whole time he'd been dancing right in the palm of L's hands.

Light's eyes were as wide as ever, as the truth hit him like a bag of bricks. "Those notebooks were fake...both of them..." He said breathlessly.

He looked around at all the investigators who looked as equally shocked as he was.

"Light...why?" Asked Matsuda as he collapsed on his knees, incredulous. Light turned to Matsuda and saw that he had a look of pure denial and disappointment. He looked at the other investigators and saw the same expressions mixed with pain, anger, confusion, and disgust. Light panicked and backed himself up against the desk, shaking his head in disbelief. The room was completely silent as all eyes were on him. This was almost surreal, and everything looked to him as though it were happening in slow motion. Light could hear the erratic pounding of his own heart going 90 miles per hour as the fear gripped him. At that moment, he felt like he was going to be sick and throw up all over himself.

"No..." He managed to say feebly. "This isn't real...this isn't real." He repeated, his eyes darting wildly from person to person. Mogi sighed and stepped forward with a pair of handcuffs to replace the ones he currently shared with L. Light freaked out.

"STOP IT! This isn't real. This is a setup! It's a fucking setup!" He yelled. He pointed at Misa and said "It was all her! Misa is responsible for all this! Not me...not me!"

"Oh really?! I think it is you, Light, or should I say, _Kira_?!' She responded, imitating the way he had wrongfully accused her two months before.

"Shut up! You set me up and you know it! Arrest her!" Yelled Light, unsteadily.

"Oh a setup is it?" She said coyly. "Well, then I guess I should tell them about how you tried to kill everyone here with THIS death note!" She declared, holding up the notebook open for everyone to see, just as he'd done to her. '_Payback's a bitch isn't it, Light?' _She thought as she looked at her bewildered ex-boyfriend. The KIT members looked on surprised.

"Luckily, this is a fake death note, and that's why we're all still alive. As you can see, my name was written on it as well, so clearly, I'm _not _Kira!" She yelled at Light. L simply stood back and watched Misa take her well-earned revenge on Light. He was proud of her in a way as she proved to the rest of task force that she was not, in fact, Kira.

"Here you go." She said as she passed the death note with everyone's names to L. "If you don't believe me, L can tell you everything. He saw it happen" She said, addressing the others. They all turned to the detective and he nodded, confirming her story.

"Thank you" He said to Misa, giving her a small smile. She returned his smile. The detective turned to Light, casting a serious look on him.

"I believe there is still another false death note missing. Light where is it?" L asked.

"GO TO HELL!" Light screamed as he started to cry. "Fuck all of you..." He said as Mogi placed cuffs on his hands. The investigator searched Light and found the missing death note copy tucked inside his jacket. Light let out an ear piercing shriek once he realized that it was all over for him.

"Ryuk! You betrayed me!" He yelled. "You knew they were fake!"

The Shinigami laughed and said that he did it for fun. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself hehe"

There was complete silence for a moment as everyone came to terms with the current situation.

"Ryuk, just kill me." Said Light, lifelessly. Ryuk was quiet for a moment. The KIT members gave each other confused looks, wondering who Light was talking to.

'He's speaking with a Shinigami" Said L plainly. They were all frightened, though the only ones in the room who could see Ryuk were L, Light, Mikami, and of course, Rem.

"Are you sure about that Light?" Asked Ryuk.

"Yes. I want to die. Kill me." He said, defeated. Ryuk chuckled and took out his death note. L saw this.

"Stop!" He ordered the Shinigami. Ryuk did as much and looked at L expectantly.

"Don't kill him." L commanded.

"And why not?"

"I will give you a thousand apples if you don't kill him"

Ryuk's eyes lit up. Now that Light was captured there was no way he could give him that bag of apples he'd promised him. This was an excellent opportunity. However, as good as L's deal was, Ryuk was greedy and wanted to milk it some more.

"Two thousand apples!" Said the Shinigami.

"One thousand five-hundred apples" Said L sternly. He didn't really care for the number of apples, but something told him that this Shinigami would appreciate haggling. Ryuk struck him as a Shinigami who liked deals and L was determined to get his respect. Ryuk thought about it, impressed that L could even get that many apples.

"Fine. Done!" Said Ryuk happily. "You know, you're not too bad" He told L.

"Ryuk!" Cried Light, angry that the Shinigami had just made a deal with his nemesis.

L turned to Light and bit his thumb, thinking. Light had another thing coming to him if he thought he could get off that easily. L would make sure that Light felt the full weight of the law at his back. Dying was not an option for him. Not until he'd paid the just price for his crimes. Takada would also have to be detained. While she was not a murderer by strict definition, she still committed a pre-meditated assault against Misa that would have resulted in her death. Not to mention that she was a key witness in the case and a Kira conspirator. L looked around and saw that pretty much every Kira except for Misa was in handcuffs. Unfortunately, She was still the second Kira and he had to arrest her until the trial date. He walked toward her and she looked at him adoringly. She assumed that he wanted to kiss her, so she leaned in, only to be surprised when she felt L slap the other end of his hand cuffs on her wrist.


	22. Interlude

**Writer's Note:** _Hello everyone, thanks again for your awesome reviews. I look forward to reading them always!_

* * *

A month had passed since the incident at Headquarters and L was extremely busy planning the logistics of the trial before the ICPO. He decided that it would be a closed trial in which only members of the ICPO would be present. There would be no official judge or jury, and the public would not be told about the proceedings. Everything had to be conducted in secrecy due the supernatural quality of the case as well as the controversy that Kira's identity would raise. Revealing Kira's identity to the general public would be a disaster for Light's family and friends. Not to mention that it reflected poorly on his father's image, being that Soichiro Yagami was a respected Chief of the NPA and a member of the ICPO.

Aside from that, L was also concerned about the notebooks of death. Knowledge of their existence was highly classified, confidential information. Their power would be tempting to many, including to members of the ICPO, and he simply could not allow anyone to get their hands on them. The death note was an unmatched weapon of mass murder that should never be allowed to fall into human hands, especially those of the greedy and power-hungry. Even L did not trust himself with it, and after this was over, he intended to burn both death notes so they may never again be used in the human world. For now, though, he needed them for two reasons. First, Light needed to keep his memories in tact, at least until after the trial. Second, L had arranged it so that the Shinigami would appear before the ICPO, and he could only do that if the notebooks were still in the human world, in tact. L was not a fan of this idea, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized how difficult it would be to prove Light's culpability without the gods of death.

Overall, there was more than enough evidence against Light. There were the two death note writings that matched his penmanship. There was his ties with Mikami and the fact that together they tried to kill everyone at Headquarters using the notebook. And then there were the many testimonies of Watari, the KIT members, himself, the Shinigami, and of course, Misa. Even Takada had agreed to talk against him in order to reduce her sentence. Mikami was the only one not testifying against Light, saying that he would rather die than speak against his 'god.' L thought it unwise of Mikami, since his obvious devotion to Light served as more proof that Light was Kira. Mikami would also be tried with Light, and for all purposes, the two stood as equal criminals in the eyes of the law.

And then there was Misa. She too would be put on trial for her crimes, but L was going to request that she be given amnesty under special conditions. To achieve this, he knew he would have to sacrifice his anonymity and appear, in person, before the ICPO. There, he would tell of how she was instrumental to solving the case and she would answer whatever questions they had. There was no room for errors; Misa had to be perfect. One wrong answer and she could easily be put in jail for life, or worse. It was for this reason that L was going to wait a month to tell them about Kira's capture. He knew that Interpol would want an expedited trial, and that would not give him enough time to prepare Misa for an audience with them.

L, Aiber, Matsuda, and Mogi were currently in a hotel suite, prepping Misa for the big day in which she would have to face judgment. Aiber had been called in to give her pointers in how to gain the trust of difficult people that weren't on her side. She was charming enough as she was, but better to over-prepare than under-prepare. The other two police officers had volunteered to play the roles of ICPO interrogators. Aiber and the other two sat in a sofa across from Misa while L walked around, examining her every expression and gesture. They would each take turns asking her questions that she should expect during her trial.

"State your name" said Mogi in an authoritative tone.

"Misa Amane"

"Do you plead guilty to being the Second Kira, and every charge associated with that title?"

"Yes" Misa responded firmly.

"And why did you commit these crimes?"

Misa swallowed nervously and launched into a long-winded explanation.

"I became the second Kira because I wanted to aid my parents' avenger in creating the new world where the innocents could feel safer. I developed an unhealthy obsession with Kira and that only worsened after I found out that Kira was Light Yagami. I wanted to join forces with him to make a better society-"

L stopped and interrupted her.

"Keep it concise. The less you say, the better." He told her. The way she was explaining things made her sound too much like a Kira supporter, which was bad. She nodded her head with determination and rephrased her answer.

"I did it because I was misguided and sympathized with Kira because he avenged my parents' deaths."

"Better" Said L. He had to admit that Misa was doing well. As long as she didn't let the nerves get to her the day of the trial, then she should have nothing to fear. It also helped that she was 6 months pregnant. It would make it harder for them to judge Misa harshly knowing that there was a life form inside her that would want its mother. L continued to pace as Aiber asked the next question.

"Misa Amane, did you know that you were actively committing an act of murder when you wrote those peoples' names down in the notebook?" He asked seriously.

This question made Misa uncomfortable and L could tell. He stopped pacing and dragged an over-stuffed chair right in front of her, sitting on it in his usual crouch. He observed her directly with that piercing stare of his, making her even more nervous. She made eye contact with him but then quickly dropped her gaze. She was ashamed.

"Yes. I did. But it's weird! Killing with the notebook isn't like killing someone face to face. It's so easy to do it, you never really have to see the person die, and at the time, I believed in Kira's cause so I didn't see it as murder, even though it was..."

She looked uneasy as she raised her eyes to meet L's again, as if apologizing to him for what she had done. He understood.

The questioning went on for another hour. Misa sighed, relieved, when the time came for Aiber, Matsuda, and Mogi to leave. L stayed since he had to keep her under supervision until the trial. At least that's what he told everyone, even though most knew that it was all an excuse to be alone with Misa. It was painfully obvious that L favored her. While the other Kiras and Takada were kept in a secured guardhouse owned by L for high-profile criminals, Misa stayed in hotels with him. They wouldn't even return to the renovated Headquarters, preferring the privacy of the hotel rooms. It was clear to everyone that L was having sex with Misa and that's why he preferred to stay in the hotels where no one was going to bother, or argue with him. The door clicked closed behind the mock judges and Misa slumped in her seat, mentally drained.

L waited a moment before jumping out of his chair and going to her. He offered his hand to her and she took it as he helped her to her feet.

"You're stressed" He said.

"I'm scared!" She sighed. "I just...I don't know...these mock interrogations are helpful, but I still don't feel comfortable. I'm scared that I'm going to stand there in front of those people and choke. If that happens then..." She sighed and shook her head, glancing down at her protruding belly sadly.

L didn't say anything, just pondering about all the different things he could do in case she did fumble during the trial. Deep down he was terrified of what could happen. If the ICPO decided to execute Misa, what would he do? Would he just let it happen? A deep sorrow built up within him at the thought. He really doubted he would let that happen. He would either appeal the decision or, if it came down to it, steal her away. No, that would unleash a world-wide manhunt. In that situation, he may not even be able to secure the death notes and escape with her safely at the same time. He was certain that he could get away and not be found, but what about the Kira case and the death notes? Could he just abandon it all like that, the most dangerous weapon of mass murder in the hands of the ICPO? All for his selfish love of a woman? Maybe. He didn't know.

He was truly torn and bothered. A frown crept onto his face as he calculated the worst case scenarios. Misa noticed his features contort into an expression of worry and concentration. So she kissed him. Without him even realizing that she'd closed the gap between them, she stood on tip-toes, leaned in, and pressed her soft, wet lips to his slightly open mouth. He snapped out of his nihilistic thoughts. For the first time in a while, he really wished he could stop thinking about this case. In the recent weeks, he found that Misa had that effect on him; she could take his mind off of things, leaving him perfectly content just being without thinking. It was remarkable.

He took her face in his hands and eagerly returned her kiss, their lips brushing onto one another repeatedly. He really wanted to hug her but their unborn child was in the way. L turned her around and hugged her from behind instead, careful to slide his arms just under her breasts. His fingers twitched to travel up further into her cleavage, but he simply stayed there for some time, with his head nestled in the crook of her neck. Misa sighed blissfully as she feelt him move his mouth on her. She hummed her approval as L began to kiss down her neck, sending pleasurable shivers down her spine. She closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of his hot breath on her neck, followed by his lips slowly and tenderly suckling on the skin there. L started kissing her shoulder when he opened his eyes, he noticed that from that angle, he had a perfect view down Misa's dress. She was wearing one of those dresses that was loose from the waist down but hugged her bust nicely, showing just the right amount of cleavage. He continued to kiss her shoulder but kept his eyes open, looking lustfully at the rise and fall of her breasts as her breathing deepened. She gently grind her hips against his and was not surprised when she felt his erection hard against her.

His breath quickened and he tightened his hold on her slightly, pushing her further against his body. L wanted her. She smiled coyly and without looking at him, she took his hand and led him to the bedroom. Once there she turned around and kissed him. L wished he could hug her tightly to him so he could feel every curve of her body against his, but her current state didn't allow it. Truthfully, half the time, he wasn't sure how to manage the baby protruding from Misa's womb during the act. He was always conscious to not get too carried away and put too much pressure there or make her uncomfortable. Luckily, this time Misa was taking charge of that. She hungrily sucked his neck this time, leaving a slick trail behind each kiss. While she did this, she moved him to stand at the edge of the bed, and pushed him down onto it.

He sat there with his legs spread so she could stand between them. Her breasts were right in his face, and he indulged in them. He took one in his hand, kneading it over her dress, while he eagerly sucked on the exposed flesh of the other. Misa's eyes fluttered closed as she let herself enjoy his touch, her hand wandering from his shoulders, to the nape of his neck and into his raven hair. L felt that tight bulge in his pants becoming really uncomfortable so he pulled himself further back onto the bed, and brought his knees up onto the bed as well. Misa pouted when she felt cold air hit her skin where L's lips once were. He took her hand and gently pulled her onto him, and she positioned herself above him. L admired the view of her hovering above him, looking like a goddess ready to please him.

She swept her hand over a strand of hair on his forehead and he brought his head up to kiss her. He broke the kiss and poured his eyes over her. No matter how many times he had her, he would always want her again, sometimes even more than the previous times. It surprised him since he was one to get bored easily, which is why he constantly sought to busy himself with new cases. Yet, Misa's touch always thrilled him and aroused him. He supposed that's what being in love with someone was like. Misa playfully brushed her knee against his aching erection, eliciting a low moan from him. He instinctively began to move his hips against her leg, yearning for the contact with his arousal. She responded by lowering herself onto him, straddling him. L ran his hands over her body appreciatively, from her waist to her breasts, and back down to her bottom and sex. He hoisted up the material of her dress and brought it over her head to remove it. She too fiddled with his jeans, unbuttoning them. L shimmied out of the remaining cumbersome clothing, relieved when his penis was freed from its confines. It was Misa's turn to ogle him and she did.

She slid out of her panties and L made quick work of her bra, quickly assaulting her breasts with his mouth and tongue as they spilled out of her unclasped bra. He was painfully hard and practically begging Misa for release. She sensed his urgent need and positioned the slick folds of her sex right on the tip of his length. L groaned and grabbed her hips as she slowly slid down his shaft. Once completely submerged in her, L felt a tide of pleasure and relief wash over him and he savored it. She began to slide up and down his arousal, making it slick with her wetness. L writhed his hips, urging her to go faster. He met her halfway each time as he thrust his hips up into her, their moans and groans echoing through the room. She felt so good around him, it drove him mad.

Misa let out short feminine gasps each time he filled her. The feeling of him, the man she loved, inside her was pure ecstasy. She closed her eyes and felt herself becoming tighter and tighter, her legs getting shaky. Each time she came down on him hard, she felt the pleasure intensify. L could feel her getting closer as well and he increased their pace, holding Misa's hips tightly and bringing her sex down upon his with fervor. Misa's panting soon became louder and she started to cry out in a high-pitched choke as the spasms of her orgasm came upon her. L shoved himself into her with even more ardor, no longer holding himself back from climax. Misa held his face and kissed him fiercely as his orgasm took him, making him jerk under her, muffling his cry with her kiss. She felt him twitch inside her, spilling his substance in spurts. Finally she released him and he fell back onto the bed, panting and looking absolutely wild.

"I love you" She said breathlessly.

"I do too. I love you, Misa" He confessed, still catching his breath. They both looked at each other and smiled before sharing another kiss. She dismounted him to lay by his side and he helped her off of him. L sighed in contentment, a grin on his face as he closed his eyes and let himself doze off, completely relaxed and free of the thoughts that plagued him before. They napped for about an hour, after which they both showered together. It was a long shower since they could not stop themselves from fooling around under the spray of water. Once they finished and dried up, they indulged in one of L's favorite treats, and Misa's preferred crave item: Chocolate-covered strawberries. The two cuddled on the couch, watching a movie. Misa was nestled in between L's legs, propping the bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries on her lap happily.

'_Yes, it was a good decision to not go back to headquarters. This is so much better' _L thought. Even though he was in the middle of resolving the most stressful, most personal case he's ever worked on, he'd never been happier. He really felt like he could do anything with Misa by his side. He decided in that moment that if she was sentenced to death, he probably would run off with her and go into hiding. It wouldn't be convenient, but she'd be alive, and with him.

Misa likewise was just as happy to be with L. She never imagined in a million years that she could be this happy with L. The only thing that put a damper on the moment was the fear of the trial lurked in the back of her mind. Also, another pressing matter was calling for attention. The baby. Things had been good between her and L ever since Light's capture but that's because neither had brought up the topic of their child. Well, L actually did tell her that he would be 'Ok' with being there for their child. That was a big step for him, she knew, but it was only a start. She would expect more from him as the due date drew nearer. Unfortunately they'd both been dodging the topic, and it was pressing on her mind. They could only avoid it for so long.

"L?" She said softly.

"Yes?"

"Tomorrow I have an appointment with Rita. It's to set the delivery date and find out the gender of our baby." She felt him tense up, but his face remained calm. "It would mean a lot if you came with me" She said nervously. There was a great deal riding on this for both of them now.

L rejecting this offer would spell disaster. As happy as she was with him now, Misa could not continue to be with him if he didn't accept their child. They were a packaged deal, and he could not have one without the other. L knew this. He was silent for what seemed like a long moment and it was killing her. L had told himself that he would be a father to the child, for Misa's sake. But as much as he reaffirmed it, he still felt afraid, inadequate. In private, he'd read articles on parenting and the whole fatherhood notion was completely alien to him. He looked at Misa and saw that she was practically begging for him to agree to go.

"Alright. I will go." He said. A small panic spread through him as soon as the words escaped his lips. Setting a date for his impending fatherhood and finding out the gender of the baby signaled the end of life as he knew it. The baby would no longer be an 'it' but a 'he or a 'she.' A daughter or a son. _His _daughter or son. He was feeling queasy and ill-prepared. But he'd already given his word to Misa.

Misa squealed in delight, hugged him, and kissed him. At that moment, she felt a huge wave of relief washing over her. Meanwhile L inwardly groaned as he half-listened to her go over the details of tomorrow's doctor visit.

* * *

**Writer's Note: **_Hey ya'll. I know this chapter is slightly different from the others in that it's shorter and there isn't that much dialogue. There was a lot to explain in this chapter and I felt that trying to explain what was happening through the characters' dialogues would have been a little forced, not to mention tedious. Another thing that some may have noticed is that the lemon is a little bit more descriptive than usual. What can I say? I was feeling adventurous. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chap. It's title is interlude for a reason and you'll all see why next chapter. I don't want to spoil anything but I will say that I'm going to be flipping this story on its head big time. Can't wait! Don't forget to review (good or bad). Till next time :)_


	23. Departure

**Writer's Note: **_Hello! Welcome back my lovely readers! So I lied last chapter about flipping this story on its head. That's not gonna happen this chapter cause I couldn't fit things into just one chapter without making a mess, but you'll all know when it happens haha. Thanks for your support and as always don't forget to review! :D_

_..._

* * *

It was 5:30 pm, half an hour over her appointment time. Misa was anxiously sitting in Rita's private gynecologist office with Watari by her side. L was nowhere to be found. She had tried calling his cell phone over a dozen times, but it appeared that his phone was off.

"Watari, where is he?" She asked the old man, angry tears pricking at her eyes. "He told me he'd be here"

Watari looked at her sadly.

"I'm sorry Misa. I do not know where he is." He lied. Of course he knew where L was. L himself was the one who'd instructed Watari to take Misa to her doctor appointment in his place. When Watari inquired why he was not coming with him, the detective gave him a vague answer, saying that he would explain everything upon their return. Whatever was keeping his adoptive son must have been grave because L seemed shook up.

"I don't understand, Watari...he should have been here by now!" She said, balling her hands on her knees. Just then Rita came out of her office. The rest of the private practice was empty as they closed at 4 pm for the general patients. Since Misa was a celebrity that would attract a lot of attention, she had been scheduled after normal hours of operation to avoid scandal. It was very considerate of Rita to do that for Misa, but she could only accommodate her so much.

"I'm sorry Misa, I really can not wait any longer. If we're going to perform the ultrasound and estimate your delivery date, we need to do it now. I have an important engagement that I need to get to." Said Rita.

Misa looked at Watari with wide eyes. She didn't want to do this without L.

"Please, Rita, just 5 more minutes! Maybe he's running late or something. I don't know. I promise if he's not here in 5 minutes then we can go ahead and do the tests." She pleaded.

Rita could see that Misa was on the verge of tears. '_Poor woman. She's had to go through so much this pregnancy, I'm honestly impressed that she hasn't miscarried, with the father being so careless.' _Thought the doctor. It truly was a miracle that Misa had made it this far into her pregnancy after all the outbursts and mysterious incidents. If it weren't for the fact that Misa really did seem to love her baby's father, Rita would have suspected that she was a victim of spousal abuse. The first time she'd seen Misa, she had bruises on her neck and other parts of her body and her child's father had been shot in the shoulder. The second time, she had tripped down some stairs, sprained her ankle, and fainted out of shock. Luckily, the times after that were just regular checkups and Misa seemed fine and happy throughout those. But now this.

"Fine. But only 5 minutes. No more than that!" Said Rita.

"Thanks! I promise!" She said. Watari was silent as he watched Misa frantically dialing L's number on her phone once again. Still nothing. His heart really did go out to her, and he wished he could give her more comfort. However the only thing in the world that could comfort her right now was L's presence and he could not give her that. The young mother-to-be hung her head low, trying to hide the fact that she was silently crying. Did this mean that L really didn't care about their baby? If that was the case, then there was only one thing left for her to do and the thought of that was devastating to her.

Rita came out of her office once again. The five minutes were up.

"Misa. It's time." She said in a motherly tone. The younger woman sniffled and wiped her eyes free of tears. She nodded her head and stood up.

"I'm sorry" Said Rita. "I'm sure he has a valid excuse for not making it"

"It's alright. I think it's better if he's not here" Said Misa, faking a smile. Rita offered her a sympathetic smile and gently led her into the ultrasound room.

-_Later that evening-_

L sat in an over-stuffed chair inside the hotel suite that he was sharing with Misa. He was stacking a mountain of sugar cubes high inside his coffee mug, a frown upon his features. He sighed. It was going to be a long night, he just knew it. All the members of the KIT plus Aiber were gathered around the suite talking nervously amongst themselves as they waited. Suddenly, the door opened and in walked Watari with a very angry Misa following behind him. The talking stopped immediately.

Misa stepped forward, her eyes still slightly red and puffy from crying. She did not even bother acknowledging the rest of the KIT members as she went straight to L and delivered a crisp slap to his face. Everyone stared in shock.

"Did you forget something?!" She asked angrily. L barely flinched when she slapped him, though his cheek stung. He looked her dead in the eyes.

"I don't forget things." He said, deadpan. "Something happened."

"You lied to me. You stood me up. And you have the nerve to sit here having a tea party?!" She yelled.

The rest of the KIT members looked at each other, clearly uncomfortable with being in the middle of what appeared to be a couples' quarrel. Misa didn't given L the opportunity to answer before she took a large yellow envelope and shoved it in his hands roughly. "That's in case you decide to man up and give two shits about your child"

L looked at the large yellow envelope with a furrowed brow. He knew exactly what was in the envelope and it scared him to death. It made him more nervous just looking at it so he took the envelope and delicately placed it on the side table beside his chair. Right now he couldn't think about the baby, not when more pressing matters required attention.

"Misa, the trial is in three days." He said seriously.

"What? Why?!" She asked, alarmed. "I thought you said the trial was in a month! Why did they move it up?"

"The ICPO found out that I have Kira in custody. Chief Yagami reported the fact by accident after he woke from his sedatives earlier today."

None of this was making any sense to Misa. She knew that Light's father had suffered a terrible heart attack upon finding out that his son was Kira and that he had been in intensive care and heavy sedatives. However, she didn't understand why it mattered that he told the ICPO about Kira's capture. After all, didn't they already think L captured Kira when she was arrested three months ago?

"Wait, they didn't know? I thought they knew. They thought I was Kira, that's why they sentenced me to death before, right? That's what you said." She told L. The detective was silent as he inwardly dreaded what was coming next. He knew eventually he would have to tell her about his lie. He just didn't expect it to be so soon.

'No, they did not know anything. I did not report your capture to them and they did not sentence you to be executed. That was a lie I fabricated to get you to confess." He told her. Misa was shocked. She couldn't even begin to express how angry she was.

"You lied to me, to manipulate me?!" She shrieked. "Do you have ANY idea how frightened I was?! I was so upset...I thought I was going to die! And our baby...I could have lost it...You could have just _asked_ me to confess nicely, like a normal human being instead of fucking blackmailing me with death!"

"That's not true. We questioned you for two months and you refused to say a word!" He responded, starting to get annoyed.

"Did YOU, L, ever go up to my apartment and ASK me what had happened?"

He sighed in annoyance.

"It doesn't matter anymore, the fact is, I did it. It worked. I was trying to save your life-"

"Yeah well you nearly killed me in the process!"

L just shook his head, not believing how dense she was being. Before he knew it, Matsuda spoke out, and what a big mistake that was. As if L hadn't dug his own grave already, Matsuda had to jump in and help.

"Misa, we all thought the same thing when we first heard about it, but it's all worked out. L also arrested you knowing that you weren't really Kira and that Light was lying. He arrested you in order to get Light to feel comfortable enough to make a bold move, and he did, and now we caught him!" He said optimistically. L wanted to kick him. That was something that Misa was not supposed to find out about.

"Matsuda, please don't help me" L said sarcastically.

Misa was gaping at him, fuming.

"So you arrested me knowing full well that I was innocent of Light's accusations?" She asked in a dangerous tone. L looked at her directly. There was no point in trying to deny anything now.

"Yes. I did."

"So for TWO MONTHS I was locked up in my apartment, made to live out a LIE, used as BAIT, so that Light could be caught?! Again, you really couldn't tell me this so I could go along with your plan?! Why?!" She asked, angry tears pooling in her eyes.

"It had to be believable" He answered, getting impatient. "If I had told you, it wouldn't have had the same effect. Light is intelligent enough to suspect foul play, especially if he saw us plotting together."

Misa was breathing heavily as the truth about her boyfriend came tumbling down on her. He was a selfish bastard and a liar. Not even Light had lied this much to her face and then tried to justify it. She felt like she wanted to cry, scream, run away, anything but be in the same room as him. She quickly turned around and went toward the bedroom. She entered and threw the door closed behind her.

'_Oh no, you don't'_ Thought L, getting up from his chair. He walked to the bedroom and opened the door. She was curled up on the bed.

"What are you doing?" He asked her. "There is a lot of work to do"

She sat up on the bed. "Fuck you, I don't even want to see you right now!" She yelled at him.

"You will have to manage. We are having an interrogation session now, prepare yourself and be ready in five minutes. I'm sure I don't need to tell you that time is short." He said before walking away.

His patience with her was running thin. The ICPO was not happy with him. In fact, he was kicking himself for not having monitored Chief Yagami more closely so that when he awoke, he could warn him to say that Kira had not yet been caught. He was angry with himself because he had made the same mistake as Light in that he did not tell one of his key personnel to lay low until further orders. Now because of his stupid slip-up he could lose Misa. He was extremely upset over it. He was orchestrating this entire trial so that she could be pardoned but he'd fucked up and angered the ICPO. They'd actually wanted the trial to be in two days but L had pulled some strings, made some objections, and finally managed to buy them an extra day.

The five minutes were up and Misa forced herself to go out. She was so angry at L but she sucked it up because as much as she hated to admit it, they had a common goal. Misa sat in the lone chair across from her 'interrogators.'

Aiber began the questioning.

"State your name"

"Misa Amane" She said sharply.

"Do you plead guilty to being the Second Kira?"

"Please skip the preliminary questions. I trust she can answer those correctly" Said L as he stood in front of a large window with his hands in his pockets, staring at nothing. Misa glared at his back.

"Very well" Said Aiber. He went on to ask more difficult questions and Misa did her best to answer as respectfully as possible in spite of her emotional state. L went back to pacing around her, watching her every expression. After a few minutes he stopped pacing and stood right in front of her.

"Stop" He said to Matsuda, who was asking a question. "Misa, when attempting to prove that you are not a cold-hearted killer, it's counterproductive to look like you want to kill everyone in the room." He told her honestly. She gave him a murderous look, which only served to further prove his point.

"I don't want to kill everyone in the room! Just you!" She snapped at him.

L was not amused. He was starting to get really frustrated because she was being so difficult when he was only trying to help her.

"Be that as it may, soften your expression." He told her coldly before going back to look out the window. Matsuda looked nervous. He waited until Misa looked ready to continue before he asked a very interesting question.

"So, Miss Amane, who is the father of your child?" He asked.

The room was dead silent. Misa fumbled. She had an answer pre-planned for almost any question except this one. Matsuda looked anxiously from her to L and then at the other KIT members, wondering if he'd asked a stupid question.

"Is that even a relevant question?" She asked, skeptical.

"Yes, and they most likely will ask it." Interjected L.

"Well, since I'm telling nothing but the truth, it's L's" She said, barely hiding the bitterness in her tone. L stood there lost in thought for a second.

"For this question, you will not tell the truth. You will say that the child is Light's." He told her. Misa looked offended. "Yes, that will work. Light will deny it, of course, but it will be his word against everyone else's. Even Takada seems to have this notion that you and Light had some sort of relation while he was seeing her. She will probably confirm it if it will help her reduce her sentence."

"Oh yeah! And let's not forget how convenient it is for you to deny your own child" Said Misa bitterly.

"I have never denied my paternity. Stop making personal attacks against me. This is serious Misa. Do you understand that in less than three days you will be standing in front of the ICPO, otherwise known as Interpol, the Intergovernmental Police comprised of 190 different countries with over 600 representatives, the vast majority of which will _not _be sympathetic to your cause. Don't push it by saying I got you pregnant. This goes for everyone as well. The child is Light's." He said with finality.

They all assented. Misa stayed silent for a moment until she spitefully nodded her agreement. She hated this so much. Thankfully the rest of the interrogation session went relatively smooth and within the hour, the KIT members started to leave. Misa stood up from her chair and went to the bedroom, where she took out a small suitcase and began packing her things. L saw her and asked where she was going.

"I'm going back to headquarters with the rest. I don't plan to stay here with you one more night."

L felt a pang in his chest, he didn't want her to leave. He wanted her to stay with him tonight. He didn't even care if they had sex or not, he just wanted to be with her, especially knowing that soon he may not be able to. He pushed the melancholic thought away and went to stand by her side. He gently took her face in his hands and went to kiss her. She pushed him away.

"Don't touch me right now. I'm leaving and that's that." She said with determination. L had no other choice but to accept her decision. He too packed his things, lingering over the large yellow envelope that she'd given him. He fingered the seal, almost daring himself to open it. A loud sound grabbed his attention as Misa cursed at her luggage, which she'd dropped, causing it to fall open. L left the envelope unopened and slipped it into his suitcase. Once they were ready, Watari drove them back to headquarters in what was the most tense car ride he'd ever been on. When they arrived, neither said a word to the other as they went their separate ways, L to the main investigation room and Misa up to her apartment.

The following day, Misa came down from her apartment only for the mock interrogation session. This time, Aiber and L went over techniques to fool a lie detector test, in case they hooked her up to one. It wasn't terribly difficult to do, but if she didn't do it right during the preliminary questions on mundane facts, then she'd be toast during the harder questions where she may need to twist facts a little.

Misa poured her best into the interrogation session, impressing both Aiber and L with how well she was getting through. She performed to their satisfaction and completed the session in record time. When she was done, she walked right past L as though he didn't exist and headed straight upstairs. He looked longingly at her as she retreated up the stairs, but did not go after her. There were still more preparations for tomorrow, when they would all depart from headquarters for Lyon, France, home of the ICPO headquarters.

-_The following day-_

It was about 4am and Misa reluctantly followed L as he led her and Watari through the airport and onto their flight. They were all flying on a private plane provided by the ICPO, complete with heavily armed guards whose main task was to watch over all the prisoners. The plane was spacious on the inside, with plenty of leg and arm room in between seats. By the time Misa boarded, Light, Mikami, and Takada had already been stowed away in their respective compartments with guards watching each one. L went ahead to a cabin just up front as a guard approached Misa and looked at her suspiciously, flashing a pair of handcuffs.

"Is this the other prisoner?" He asked in a thick French accent. Misa eyed him and the handcuffs nervously.

"The young woman will remain with us. Her circumstances are not the same as the others" Said Watari in his jovial voice.

"That's against protocol" Said the guard, looking displeased.

"Please, I assure you it will be just fine."

"I need something in writing saying that your superior allows this. Otherwise I can not let her roam free"

Righ then L stepped in from the cabin and said something to the guard in French. Misa didn't know a lick of French beyond the basics, so the conversation that ensued between L and the guard was completely obscured to her. Whatever L said worked though, as the guard nodded and went to stand by the door.

"You, Watari, and I will be sitting in here" L told her, gesturing toward the cabin. Misa scowled at him. The cabin had two single rows of three seats on each side with room in between for someone to walk through. She went in and sat in one of the spacious seats. L chose a seat right next to hers and immediately took out his laptop and a coffee mug. He began filling up the mug with coffee from a container. Misa rolled her eyes at him.

"Don't think you're in my good graces just because you helped me just now." She said icily. Watari came in and sat in his seat, behind L.

"You're still angry with me?" He asked.

"Yes!"

"Why?"

"Because you lied to me! It might surprise you, but women don't like men who lie and stand them up." She said sarcastically. "You did that plus some AND you didn't even apologize"

"I don't understand. I did it for good reasons, one of which was to save your life by having you actively cooperate." He told her, gazing at his coffee with disinterest. "As for 'standing you up' I was busy making preparations for the trial"

"But it doesn't change that you were wrong! At least say you're sorry!"

"No. I don't believe I will because I was not wrong." He said bluntly. "My actions and decisions led to Kira's capture. I will not apologize for employing whatever means were necessary to do it."

Misa looked outraged by his arrogance. Watari pinched the bridge of his nose and interjected. "I believe what she's trying to say, Ryuzaki, is that 'ends don't justify the means'"

Misa looked at Watari with gratitude and said "Yes! Thank you Watari for understanding!"

L looked at Watari and defended his stance on the matter. Watari immediately regretted having gotten involved. It was 4 am, he was tried, and this was a 12 hour flight. They had not even taken off yet and Misa and L's argument was already giving him a headache. '_This can't be good for my blood pressure'_ He thought as he got up, opened the cabin door, and walked to the outside compartment. It was large with tables and seats for all the KIT members. Watari sat down on one of the empty seats and got comfortable. Aizawa was trying to sleep but the arguing couple could be heard through the cabin door. He chuckled and shook his head.

"We have been on this flight for less than 20 minutes and they're already going at it..." He laughed. "Poor L, he doesn't know that starting an argument with a woman you're going to be stuck with for 12 hours is a huge mistake."

"Speak from experience?" Asked Mogi. Aizawa chuckled some more. Ide cringed in his seat, looking like he was trying to suppress some terrible memory. He, like Aizawa was also married and knew what he was talking about.

Moments later, a pissed off Misa emerged from the cabin and approached the guard.

"Please arrest me and take me to another compartment." She said offering her wrists to him.

The guard looked at her confused. "Miss, go back to your seat or I will have to tie you down to it." He said. Misa looked at him as if to say _'really?_' and when he did not change his answer, she huffed angrily and went back to the cabin, muttering about how she thought Light would be better company.

-_12 hours later-_

The plane landed safely in Lyon, France, on an isolated runway by the airport. As soon as they were given the clear to exit the plane, the guards retrieved all the prisoners, except for Misa. Light, Mikami, and Takada were led out first, handcuffed and blindfolded. The rest of the team followed after, descending the stairs onto the runway in a single file. Misa was one of the last ones on the queue to exit. She heard a commotion going on outside. There was the sound of feet shuffling and voices calling out. The line stopped.

"What the-?" She wondered. L looked uneasy. They finished walking outside, and were surprised to be detained by what seemed like an entire fleet of agents, police officials and SWAT personnel.

L eyed the wall of law enforcers as they enclosed upon them, some talking into walkie talkies, confirming their arrival. L had been dreading this from the moment they entered ICPO territory. He knew what this was: an extradition. L instinctively moved next to Misa and took her by the hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She was paralyzed with fright and amazement at the amount of police there. The unknown police force examined them menacingly. The agents among the police instructed everyone to identify themselves and to hand over the prisoners. Misa instinctively stepped back and held on tighter to L's hand, her heart pounding. She turned to him with a frantic gaze.

"What's going on? Who are these people?"

"You're being extradited. Misa, as of now, you're no longer under my jurisdiction" He told her, his expression unreadable. He didn't want to let her go, even if she was angry with him, it pained him to let her go. But she was out of his hands now and he couldn't do anything about it.

"Don't be afraid. Remember everything we went over" He said as an agent accompanied by two SWAT officers approached them. Misa stepped even closer to him, subconsciously seeking his protection.

The others were preoccupied with presenting their identification to the agents, who were inspecting each individual thoroughly. Light, Mikami, and Takada were immediately loaded into separate black vans by the officers. The agent and the officers at last stood before L and Misa. Misa's grip on L's hand was so tight that she'd cut circulation to it. The agent said something in French and it didn't sound too friendly. Misa looked between L and the agent nervously but L only nodded sadly and looked down at the floor. Misa felt his hand go slack as he released her and she felt a wave of panic go through her. Oh, what she would give now to be back on that plane arguing with him, safe. L stepped back reluctantly and the two officers surrounded her, handcuffed her and blindfolded her. She swallowed nervously, trying to remain calm as she was led away from L and the others, but it was difficult. All around her she heard the strange officers talking rapidly in a language that she did not understand as she was tugged this way and that way by unkind hands until finally she felt herself entering what she assumed was another black van. She was officially in the hands of the ICPO.


	24. ICPO I

**Writer's Note: **_Ok, so at last we are at the trial. Sorry for the long wait, I was a busy busy bee these past couple of weeks with my summer job, my tutoring gig, not mentioning that I lost last weekend due to AnimeNext! If anyone went to AnimeNext, I was cosplaying as Mokuba from YuGiOh! So if you saw a Mokuba you may have seen me haha. Also another reason why I took so damn long to update was because every time I logged on I would read one of my previous chapters and be horrified. I would be like "OMG this is terrible, how could anyone like this?!" And then I would go on an editing rampage. So literally I've been revising chapters left and right. In terms of content, I made most longer and reworded things...now that I feel better about it, back to this. Thanks to all who reviewed, I always look forward to them _=) _see you all at the end!_

* * *

Without Misa, L felt a strange empty sensation as though a part of him had been taken away. He stood quiet, gazing out the window of his hotel room in Lyon as Watari came into the room. The old man began to report on the status of the other KIT members while L let his eyes travel over the world outside their window. The detective wallowed in his melancholy state, only half listening to Watari speak. The view from their room was an impressive panorama of the city's stores, parks, monuments, and restaurants. However, none of them, not even the world-famous pastry stores, peeked L's interest. His mind was somewhere else, with someone else.

'_Misa would love France' _He thought, wishing she were there with him.

He realized then that it had been more than a year since the day he met the beautiful blonde at To-Oh university. To be exact, it had been a year and five months since the fated meeting, and in all the time since, there hadn't been a day without her. L's eyes stared blankly outside as he remembered their humble beginnings. He'd played the part of the heartless interrogator for 50 days, doing little more than look at her cry and squirm in her restraints from a small screen. He sighed. At the time, she had been nothing more than a criminal to him, albeit a beautiful one. As a man he could not ignore that. Even so, he never would have guessed that she would become so much more than a criminal with a pretty face to him. One way or another, Misa was always somewhere within his reach- at headquarters, in his interrogation room, in her apartment, in his arms. Now it felt odd not having her around. As the seconds passed, Watari continued to talk, and L continued to think about Misa.

"...Mr. Matsuda, Mr. Ide, and Mr. Aizawa are in the adjacent room..."

'_If Misa is exonerated under special conditions, I will make it a point to bring her to France again, for leisure.'_

"...Mr. Mogi and Mr. Ukita are staying in the room across from us, and as you know, Mr. Yagami is in the ICPO facilities..."

'_Yes, she would like that. And then maybe she will forgive me for not showing up to that doctor's appointment...'_

"As per your instructions, I told Chief Yagami to not contradict anything said by us. I have told the ICPO members to leave all communication devices at the entrance..." Just then Watari paused. He looked to see if L noticed that he'd stopped talking. The detective was still as a rock, staring out the window, unusually oblivious to what was being said. The old man cleared his throat loudly to grab his attention.

"L, are you listening?"

"Yes, of course." He lied. "Is Yagami-san planning to testify?"

"He already gave his testimony, though it was limited due to the fact that he wasn't present at Light's capture. He won't speak at the trial and will not be part of the judgment process."

"I expected as much. Light is his son after all." Said L.

Everything was going as expected, though it did not make things any easier for him. There was a knock at the door and when Watari opened it, a hotel staff member walked in, wheeling a cart full of sweets. Watari greeted the staff member and thanked him for the service. The raven-haired man turned to see the cart loaded with treats. He perked up a little and tore himself from the window to sit by the cart. He settled himself down on a chair next to the cart and admired the multicolored assortment of treats, poking a few. When he finally settled on one, he took it delicately in between his forefinger and thumb and devoured the treat. He repeated the process several times, welcoming the small amount of comfort the sweets offered.

-_In the ICPO headquarters-_

Misa was trying hard to sleep but it was nearly impossible. She was still blindfolded and handcuffed and she had not been given anything to eat since she'd been taken prisoner hours ago. L had been right to worry about the ICPO. Her jailers were nowhere near kind and they made it clear that she was not someone they felt sympathy for. In fact, the guards seemed to be especially harsh on her, knowing that she was a criminal. Or maybe it just seemed that way to her since she'd gotten used to L treating her so well.

Her latest imprisonment under the detective was definitely a big improvement over how he'd treated her the first time around. She still winced whenever she recalled the 50 days of brutal interrogation. L had her in a straight-jacket, blinded, and strapped to an uncomfortable metal contraption that made her completely immobile, stuck in a vertical position most of the day. Her limbs were often numb and in pain from not being able to move for so long. It hurt a lot and she was almost sick from being in that standing position that would not allow her to sleep properly. Then there was his relentless questioning at all hours of the day or night, and his uncaring manner. He tormented her to the point that she had asked Rem to kill her. Yes, in those days, she would have preferred the ICPO to being L's prisoner. The man she loved could be a monster when he wanted to be. Even so, she had to admit that they had come a long way, him especially. She smiled sadly.

'_Stupid panda...'_

At least Rem was with her. Misa could not speak to her out loud of course, but Rem did try to comfort her. Unfortunately most of the time Rem said things that worried her more than put her at ease.

"Misa if any of these people tries to hurt you, I will kill them instantly." Said the Shinigami.

Misa sighed and sat up on the cot. If Rem killed anyone, it would make her look much worse than she already did.

'_That would suck' _She thought with a shudder.

Even though the Shinigami posed a threat to the guards around her, Misa found her presence reassuring, like an old friend. Also, the fact that Rem was there let her know that L was nearby. As much as she hated it, the thought of him being close made her feel warm and protected. Misa quickly rebelled against the comforting feeling that L brought her and instead focused on all the lies he told her and the things he did...

'_All I want is an apology. That's the absolute minimum he can give me and our baby for all he's put us through! If he can do that, I can find it in my heart to forgive him. But if he doesn't, then...I can't be with him. I can't be with a man that lies and cheats and doesn't show concern for his child and doesn't even apologize for his errors! If I wanted something like that, I would have stayed with Light!'_ She disliked the thought of leaving L, but the more she considered the alternative, the more she realized that things could not go on the way they had been. She sat cross-legged on her bed. She would have brought her knees up to her chest to curl up comfortably against the wall but her 7-plus month-old child would not allow that. She silently lamented her situation with L. '_I can't do it anymore...what kind of woman would I be if I stayed with him like this, and what kind of example would he set for our son?'_

Misa imagined what it would be like once the baby arrived. Her son would grow up watching his father break her heart time and again without even breaking a sweat. That was unacceptable. Not only that but while L didn't actively rebel against the idea of being a father, he'd proven that he was completely indifferent toward it. He didn't talk about it and he didn't want to be there for his son. To Misa, neglect was just as bad as rejection, because in a way, they were both the same thing. She learned that the hard way through dating Light. This time Misa would not stand for it. If she survived this trial, she would ensure that her son had a good father, or none at all. She seemed resolute as she laid back down on her cot with Rem looking over her as she tried her best to sleep.

_...the following day..._

The air was thick with anxiety and anticipation as a large group of men and women filed solemnly into the ICPO headquarters. As per L's terms, the representatives all abandoned their cell phones and communication devices at the entrance of the ICPO building. They were not told explicitly why, only that it was crucial to the trial. There was also a prior agreement to not record or document any of the proceedings. L found it particularly difficulty to convince the president of the ICPO of agreeing to that. They fought him on it with every protocol and rule they could muster but he'd stuck to his argument and offered them a choice. He told them that, if after seeing the first two witnesses, they still wished to record or document the trial, they would be free to do so. All he asked was that they hold off on doing so until after the first two witnesses testified. In truth, the first two witnesses would be the Shinigami. Once the ICPO saw them and learned about the death note, L was certain that they would share his interest in keeping the trial secret.

The many men and women slowly entered the main conference auditorium, where the trial would take place. They spoke in hushed tones spiced with excitement. Dozens of languages could be picked out from the crowd, all wondering the same thing: Why did L hide the fact that he captured Kira for so long? How were all the Kiras captured? And most importantly, how was Kira able to commit all those murders? The representatives poured into the large room, and descended the levels of the auditorium until they reached their respective seats. Everything was ready.

The KIT members, with the exception of L were all present in an adjoining room, unable to hear the ICPO members' discussion. They were to remain there until each was called to testify. Matsuda, Ide, Ukita, Mogi, and Aizawa sat around in silence. A clicking noise drew everyone's attention to Aizawa who had just ignited a lighter and was lighting himself a cigarette.

"Hmph. I thought you quit" Said Mogi. Aizawa took the cigarette into his mouth and grinned.

"I did. I just feel like I need one right now. I've earned it and frankly, I don't know how I lasted this long."

Aizawa took a drag from his cigarette and immediately one of the ICPO guards marched over to him with a disapproving look.

"That's not allowed here! Put it out!" Said the guard. Aizawa held his hands up guiltily.

"Alright, alright! Sheesh. I'm just trying to relax..."

Meanwhile, in the ICPO auditorium, the president of the organization, Mikel Ferraro, sat at his post. The auditorium was silent as the representatives eagerly awaited for the interrogators to arrive. Someone coughed, the sound resonating through the auditorium. Papers were shuffled, and chairs swiveled, the insignificant sounds amplified by the eerie stillness of the room. At last, a side door opened and a guard stepped through. The president stood and all eyes fell on him.

"The interrogators are here. We will commence the trial." He stated. With those words, the guard exited the auditorium, closing the door behind him. He sat down and seconds later, the room erupted into hushed whispers as a mysterious man in a trench coat made his way to the front of the auditorium.

"Good day to you all!" Boomed Watari's voice. The room fell silent at once. "L would now like to address you."

The main screen blipped and a large "L" appeared on it. L's voice, modified by the voice scrambler was heard throughout the room.

"Greetings, members of the ICPO. As most of you know, I am L. Prior to this meeting I asked that you do not take notes or record any of what you hear or see in this room today." He paused. "Thank you in advanced for agreeing to comply, you will soon understand the reason for this. Before we begin, Watari will pass around a box to you all. Please place your hand inside the hole in the box. You should feel something akin to a piece of paper. Once you have done this, please wait until the others have done the same. Further explanation will be provided thereafter."

One of the representatives erupted into protest.

"What is this?! Some kind of joke?" Said the man, refusing to place his hand in the box. The rest of the room followed suit in discussion, some in favor of going along, others refusing to do it without further explanation. L was annoyed. '_Just do it' _He wanted to say. The president took the words right out of his head as he stood to his feet, holding his hands up.

"Just do as L says" He commanded and the room fell quiet once more. He looked to Watari and said "Continue." Once the box with the death note pieces had been passed around, the representatives looked up expectantly at the large "L" on the screen.

"Thank you for your cooperation. What you are about to see may come as a shock but I ask that you remain calm and objective. The difficulty in solving this case lied not only its unprecedented scope but also in the supernatural events associated therewith. I am sure most of you are familiar with the term 'Shinigami'..." As L spoke those words, Rem appeared at the front of the auditorium, followed by Ryuk. People screamed, some jumped, chairs were overturned, and arguments broke out as an uproar ensued...the trial had officially begun.

..._Two hours later..._

The president of the ICPO sat pensively at his post, overlooking the rest of the assembly. They had just finished interviewing those two creatures, the Shinigamis called Rem and Ryuk. Everyone was shaken up from seeing them, still in shock over the fact that Kira's power came from gods of death and killer notebooks. If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, they would not have believed it. Now he understood why L wanted to keep the trial a complete secret. He had to agree that was the best course of action. He massaged his temple, feeling a headache coming on.

"Bring the first prisoner" He said, determined to push through his discomfort. A group of guards entered the room escorting Takada to a single chair in a spotlight in front of the interrogators.

Takada confessed to everything, just as she had agreed to do. Because of the lesser nature of her crimes, she was not sentenced to death. She was merely condemned to house arrest under strict supervision by ICPO guards for a period of five years. It was more time than she had hoped, but at least she was not going to prison. As far as that was concerned, L had kept his word. Takada was escorted out and President Ferraro called everyone's attention.

"I understand you are all alarmed. This trial is unlike anything we ever expected. However, having said this, it is important that we all stay true to our purpose here in sentencing these criminals to their due punishment. Thousands of people, both innocent and guilty, lay dead today because of Kira. And let's not forget the precious lives of those twelve FBI agents, and many other law enforcement personnel, that were killed by Kira. We are here today to do them all justice." Everyone listened intently. "It is my understanding that there are three people who shared Kira's power: Kira himself, a second Kira, and a third Kira. We will break for an hour now and when we return, we will judge the three with the correct weight of the law. We will show Kira what true justice is! Assembly adjourned for now."

On that note, the members of the ICPO stood and shuffled out of the room. L exhaled heavily, his fear returning. '_I will have to make a case for Misa soon. Judging from the tone of that speech, the ICPO is looking for maximum penalty, and rightfully so. Kira took the world hostage, and that will not be taken lightly...'_

_...Later..._

"Bring in the next prisoner" Declared President Ferraro as he called the assembly to order. L bit his nail as he looked on from his computer screen. The guards came in half-dragging someone slumped, with their head covered. It wasn't Misa, L knew that much, and it probably wasn't Light since his interrogation would most likely be the last. That only left Mikami.

The guards sat the slumped figure down in the seat in front of everyone. They removed the head covering, revealing Mikami. L noticed that he looked terrible, even worse than when he'd been captured. His eyes were red and puffy, his hair was disheveled, and he clearly looked like he hadn't had practiced proper hygiene in a few weeks.

"Teru Mikami. Do you plead guilty to your crimes and of being the third Kira?" Asked one of the interrogators, a man. L could not make out the interrogator's face which was obscured by the darkness of the auditorium. Mikami seemed disoriented and confused.

"I...I haven't committed any crimes! I have carried out justice...for god!" He spat out. He looked frazzled, bewildered. "Those people _deserved _to die. If you call executing rapists, murderers, and thieves a crime then I guess I am! I am guilty of believing in Kira, the savior of the innocent, and god of the new world!"

The representatives were taken aback by his brazen outburst. Mikami clearly had a death wish, which the representatives would gladly grant. The rest of Mikami's interrogation went the same way, with Mikami making grand statements about Kira's judgment, while occasionally insulting everyone in the room by calling them sinners and evildoers. Other than that, everything went smoothly. The third Kira was owning up to everything he did, and proudly. After only 30 minutes of interrogation, the representatives decided that they had enough of Mikami.

They took very little time deliberating. After a unanimous decision, Teru Mikami was going to be put to death, by lethal injection.

L knew he had to do it now. He could tell that Ferraro was about to call in the guards again, and he had no doubt that this time it would be Misa in the hot seat. Ferraro rose to speak and L interjected.

"President Ferraro and members of the ICPO. Before we continue, I have a petition to make regarding Misa Amane, the second Kira." He said. Everyone looked from the screen to the president.

"Yes?..." Responded the president.

..._elsewhere..._

Misa heard a commotion coming from somewhere unspecified, followed by footsteps fast approaching her cell.

"Rem what's going on?" She asked out loud without thinking. She was still blindfolded, but Misa knew that Rem was with her. The cell opened and hands grabbed her. She already had a blindfold on but they covered her head with something for some reason.

"L has shown himself for you Misa. He is here." Rem responded.

"What?!" Exclaimed Misa. The guards snapped their heads toward her.

"What did you say?" Asked one of the guards. Luckily this one spoke English, a language she knew.

"No-nothing! I sneezed!"

The guard inspected her closely and for a second she feared that he might not have believed her. He tugged her in his stride without saying another word. Misa released her breath and tried to keep up the pace to avoid being dragged around briskly. She didn't know how many guards were with her, she only felt two grabbing her by the arms on either side. There must have been at least 3 or 4 though, since she could hear whispering behind her.

"I never expected him to be so young..."

"Yeah, he's freaking weird too. He looks like a mad genius, but of course that's not too surprising since it's L..."

Misa wanted to look back and listen in on the conversation so badly but she knew she would only be dragged away from it if she did.

"Quiet you two! We are about to enter" Said the guard tugging her arm on the right. Just like that, the whispering behind her stopped. She heard two sets of creaky, heavy double doors open as she was led into a room. The guards pulled her forward and she went. Wherever they were, the floor was carpeted and it was on an incline, with steps. It reminded her of a theater auditorium. Even though she was blinded, she couldn't help but feel that there were a lot of eyes on her. It was a thick, eerie, forced silence, too quiet for it to have been natural. She heard chairs creaking and muffled whispers surging all around her so she knew they were definitely not alone. The guards continued to drag her by the arms and Misa could not help but feel like an animal being led to slaughter before hundreds of unknown spectators.

Finally they plopped her down on what felt like a heavy mahogany chair and pulled the cover off her head as well as the blindfold. Seeing lights for the first time in 24 hours was almost overwhelming. The bright lights cast on her gave her a spotlight while obscuring everyone else. She squinted trying to make out the sea of people sitting, looking at her. She looked to her side and saw a stand with an authoritative looking man sitting upon it. Whomever he was, must have been important. However, what caught her attention most was the presence of L. He stood there looking casual as ever, with his hands in his pockets.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. '_How can he be so calm?!' _

She turned back to face her audience. '_Well, this is it. Showtime.'_ She thought, taking a deep breath. Misa was ready.


	25. ICPO II

**Writer's Note: **_Yeah, it's time for part II of "ICPO," and **if you haven't read part I of this chapter then go back to the previous chapter otherwise you'll be confused**. That's all I have for my boring writer's note. I'll talk to you guys at the end! Huzzah!_

* * *

Misa waited patiently and ready, but no questions came. It was weird, how everyone just sat around whispering here and there. Weren't they going to question her? She looked uncertainly at L. He met her gaze but he only had that blank expression he sometimes wore. She looked up at the man on the stand. His eyes darted quickly from her, to L, to her belly. Did he know? A dreadful feeling started to creep up on her from the pit of her stomach.

"Interesting..." Said the man cryptically. L looked up at him and the man leaned over slightly to get a better look. "Very interesting. Detective L, you have a personal interest in this woman, do you not?"

"That is correct. Otherwise I would not have shown myself here."

"And are you certain that your personal interest is purely professional?" The man asked skeptically. L knew why he was asking, it was plainly obvious he was referring to Misa's pregnancy.

"Yes. Like I said, Misa Amane has been an indispensable asset to the Kira Investigation Taskforce. Among her many contributions were the discovery of the fourth Kira, Kyosuke Higuchi, as well as the capture of Kiyomi Takada, Teru Mikami, and of course Light Yagami. She was crucial to bringing them all to justice. She possesses very good investigative skills and has been of great service to the Kira investigation from the very beginning. As the Shinigami Rem explained, her memories were lost once she relinquished her notebook. Without the influence of the real Kira, Misa Amane was pure of heart and intention in helping to catch him. Without her, we probably wouldn't be here today and Kira would still be out there."

Misa blushed a little. She couldn't help but feel flattered by everything he said. Sure she knew he was exaggerating quite a bit, and that he was purposely omitting all the parts where things had gone wrong because of her, but she supposed that it would defeat the point if he talked about those. The president silently considered L's words.

"I see. Well, when you phrase it that way, it would be extremely harsh, and perhaps unreasonable for us to put Miss Amane to death, no? Especially, considering her current state." He paused for a moment and put his hands down on the stand. "Sure...I believe you. I will strongly consider your request."

Was she hearing correctly? Was she really going to be saved, just like that? Misa's eyes shone and she felt like a heavy burden had been thrown off her shoulders.

"Thank you!" She blurted out. As soon as she spoke, hundreds of heads turned toward her.

The president put his hand up to stop her from speaking any further. He looked at her directly and she almost swore that there was a hint of a smirk on the man's face. "Of course, what you may not know is that my title of President of the ICPO can still only get me one vote. The ultimate decision lies with them" He said, gesturing to the sea of nameless faces. Misa's heart sunk. The representatives began to whisper among themselves, and President Ferraro had to call them to order.

"Interrogators, please begin" He said, sitting back down. Misa sat expectantly in her chair, more nervous than she wanted to be. Then at last the questions came, all from a monotonous male voice hidden in the shadows of the auditorium. They were customary questions that she was used to about her background, her motivations for joining forces with Kira, if she declared herself guilty, etc. She gave good, well-rehearsed answers to each question. It was going better than she expected, so much so, that she nearly felt relieved. She looked up and saw that the President was practically burning a hole in her skull with his eyes. He made her extremely nervous, so Misa decided to not look at him.

"So, Miss Amane, please explain the mechanics of the Shinigami Eyes." Asked the male interrogator.

"Oh please Augustus, we already know from the Shinigami itself how the eyes work! Your questions are redundant. Let me!" Interrupted an exasperated female voice. Misa was surprised by the outburst of the female interrogator. She squinted, trying to make out the woman who'd spoken out but that was not necessary as she stepped forth into the light.

The woman was short, appeared to be about 50, with short white hair, styled in a pixie cut. Her eyes were a cold, steely blue, and her expression oozed contempt. Misa did not like this woman. L did not like her either and he had the feeling that he'd seen that woman before. The female interrogator paced around Misa, as if studying the younger woman, her heels clicking on the floor with each step.

"Miss Amane, how many people _did_ you kill?"

"Um, not that many..." Gasps could be heard throughout the room. That came across as careless and she knew it. "I mean, they were all important! But what I meant to say is that I didn't kill nearly as many as Light or Mikami. But I take responsibility for my actions!...sorry, I didn't really keep track..." She said, looking down at her lap. '_Fuck. I rambled...'_

"She killed 19 people in total before her capture" Responded L. The woman briskly turned toward him and narrowed her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I thought I asked _her_" She responded. "Or would _you_ like to be interrogated as well, detective L, because if you do, then I would _very_ much love to oblige given that you hid _criminals _for over _a month_ without telling _anyone_. I am very interested in hearing more about your _motives_ for doing that."

L really disliked the woman. Something about her irked him, and it wasn't just the way she overemphasized certain words when she spoke. On the surface he looked calm and collected, but on the inside he feared for Misa. '_Where have I seen this woman before? I know I've seen her somewhere...'_

President Ferraro stepped in saying "Gloria, please refrain from asking questions to others besides Miss Amane. Detective L is not the one on trial here. In fact, we are all very grateful for all that he has done. Continue."

The woman seemed unfazed by the reprimand. She focused on Misa again as though nothing had happened.

"So _tell_ me, Miss Amane, how do you feel about being a murderer? Do you _really_ think that it would be fair to the families and friends of those you killed if you walked away free? Huh?"

Misa gaped helplessly at the woman. She was pretty sure that question was extremely biased. Even so, it didn't look like anyone was going to jump in and try to save her this time.

"Well, I...would be upset if I were in their shoes. Um...that's really all I can say..."

"Is it? After all you've done, you're going to sit here _blabbering_ nonsense? Before it almost sounded like you were genuinely _sorry_ for your crimes, but I suspect that was all an act. A _well-rehearsed_ puppet show orchestrated by someone who is much _smarter_ than you." She said, looking pointedly at L. "Yes, someone _very_ _smart_ with a _very keen_ interest in you..."

L looked up at the president and he in turn objected to the woman's commentary. "Gloria, please stick to questions and not speculation" Again the woman seemed unfazed. L tried his best to keep his expression neutral but it was apparent that this woman had it out for him and Misa. He was curious as to why the president and representatives were letting her continue this way. Normally, if an interrogator got out of line multiple times, they would be pulled out of the interrogation.

"Anyways, as I was saying before...don't you think that your answer was a little vague? Compared to the answers you gave before, you seem like a _completely_ different person now, _Misa_...Don't you think?" Misa swallowed nervously.

"I don't know what you mean"

"Oh my, did I use _big_ words? Are you _confused_? You must not be very bright, I take it, no?" She cooed in a condescending tone. Misa wanted nothing more than to run away crying from this woman. "What's the _matter_? You didn't rehearse your answers enough so now you forgot them? You want to know what you should _never_ forget? The 19 people you killed!"

"Gloria, that was an answer not a question" Said the president. The interrogator ignored the President's comment and carried on.

"Misa Amane, your parents are dead correct? How would _you_ feel if Kira had killed them and then was simply allowed to walk free of the death penalty?" She asked. Misa was on the verge of tears. How dare this woman bring her parents into this?

"I...I wouldn't like it..." She replied shakily.

"Oh! Of _course_ you wouldn't! So why on god's green earth should we do it for you?! Just look at you, you're a disgrace, unwed and pregnant with a bastard child at your age, AND a _murderer_ to boot. Why, your parents must be _twisting_ in their graves!" She spat.

Misa got up from the chair, standing taller than the woman who was even shorter than she was. The guards were immediately on her, restraining her but she didn't care. She turned to the president and yelled at him.

"This isn't right! This woman has done nothing but throw insults at me this whole time! I know I don't know much about this process but this is NOT OK!" She yelled as the guards pushed her back down on the chair. The president sighed and waved her off.

"Gloria...please control yourself or I will be forced to switch interrogators" He said.

The woman gave an exasperated sigh, turned to him, and gave him a strained smile.

"My apologies" She said curtly, finally acknowledging the fact that she had been scolded. She walked toward the young mother-to-be and said "Misa, are you familiar with methods of interrogation?"

Misa looked at the woman with contempt. She remembered when L interrogated her, but that was about it. She shook her head.

"Ah, how _naive_. Do you know that I can _torture_ you?"

As soon as she'd said that, L recalled where he'd seen the woman before. '_That's right, she was the interrogator for the BB murder case trial...she had used that same line then too. She claimed that she could torture a confession out of someone. Of course, most people knew it was a lie, that law prohibits torture internationally, but she made a convincing argument and caused a witness to be convicted. She made demeaning comments and asked demoralizing questions in an attempt to throw off the person being questioned. That way, they were more likely to make mistakes during the interrogation' _L looked at Misa. She was definitely frantic and frightened. One thing he remembered about this woman was that she liked to mess with people's heads, and she was very good at what she did. Once, she'd managed to get a man convicted for the sole reason that she'd made him lose his temper and he lunged at her, proving that he had anger issues and thus could have killed his family in an angry outburst. He had to say something.

"That would be a violation of human and civil rights-" L interjected and was promptly interrupted by the woman. It did not matter, as long as Misa knew that the woman was just bluffing.

"Silence detective L, I was not asking _you_!" Said the woman pointing menacingly at him. This time, the president said nothing. L looked up expectantly at him and got nothing back.

"Well, if we are now done with rude interruptions from _third parties_, tell me, Misa..." The woman placed a hand on Misa's shoulder and looked at her with feigned concern. Misa shuddered at the unwanted touch. "Ever since you walked in here, we've all been _dying_ to know who got you pregnant. I was _shocked_ you see, because I didn't expect detective L to allow criminals to engage in sexual activities while they're being investigated in his _facilities._"

Misa looked her straight in the eyes. She felt so humiliated by this woman, it was hard to maintain eye contact. "My baby is Light's" She said as confidently as she could. L felt strangely upset upon hearing her say those words. He didn't like hearing her say that.

"Oooh! That makes a lot of sense. _Too_ much sense, for someone like you. Are you _sure_?" Said the woman. Misa shut her eyes and counted to three, trying to calm herself.

"Yes, I'm sure."

The woman moved in close to Misa and whispered in her ear. "I think you're lying..." She grinned and motioned for the guards to come.

"Hook her up to a lie detector!" Announced the woman. "Guards, set her up, and be thorough." Misa soon found herself hooked up to a bunch of wires connected to a laptop and another strange instrument. She had wires on her arms, fingertips, head, and even on her thighs. Gloria seemed pleased. Misa hated her so much, she was finding it hard to concentrate. She took a few deep breaths. '_I can do this...I know it' _She looked at L and for the first time the entire trial she saw a hint of emotion on his face. He actually seemed concerned.

'_I can do this' _

"What is your name?"

'_L Lawliet'_ She thought. "Misa Amane" She said out loud.

"What is your age?"

'_25' _She said in her head. "I'm 20" She said out loud.

"What is your occupation?"

_'Lawyer'_ She lied to herself, effectively raising her heart rate. "Actress and model" She replied

"Who is the father of your child?"

_'Light Yagami'_

"It's Light Yagami."

..._Thirty minutes later...__  
_

Gloria was displeased. She frowned as the guards unhooked Misa from all the wires. In the half hour that she was allowed, Gloria threw as many questions at Misa as she could, most of them designed to further humiliate and fluster her in hopes of catching her in a lie. However, due to time constraints and lack of solid reason to suspect that Misa was lying, President Ferraro finally put an end to the brutal interrogation session.

"Hmph! Just give me two more days with her. I'm certain that I'll get her to crack!" Said Gloria.

Misa was convinced that Gloria was pure evil. She was exhausted, slumped in her chair, the heat from all the lights getting to her. She wanted nothing more than to sink into a nice tub full of cool water and just fall asleep. She could not see L because he was ways behind her but he was very much uplifted by how well she'd done with the lie detector. He wished he could speak to her alone but that would have to wait.

"Well, there you have it" Said the detective optimistically. President Ferraro scratched his chin. He had to admit that the argument for saving the second Kira was compelling. He would pass it to vote.

"Very well. And if we don't give her the death penalty, what do you propose we do? Life in prison perhaps?"

Misa cringed from her slumped position at the thought of being thrown in jail for life. She would be locked away from those she loves, unable to see her son grow up, or even be part of his life. If it came down to that, she would ask them to kill her.

L pretended to consider it. "I'm afraid I will have to ask for more. I was thinking of something more like amnesty, which I believe is reasonable, all things considered. In fact, I am so confident that Miss Amane poses no threat to society that I'm willing to wager my life on it. If she ever gives solid reason to suspect that she has started killing again, feel free to kill me."

And there it was, he'd finally arrived at the core of the issue, the proposition that he'd been building up to this entire time. The room erupted into dozens of animated conversations, some even seeming hostile. Yet, it was difficult to gauge where the majority of the ICPO members stood on the matter. But they would find out in a few moments.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Please settle down!" Roared President Ferraro. "We must have order if we are going to do this!" He raised his arms and the room slowly quieted down. Misa did not dare to look at the crowd as she was too afraid to see her hopes dashed.

"We will cast votes on whether or not to pardon Misa Amane now."

The room bustled with murmurs as the ICPO representatives cast their votes electronically through a small station at each of their desks. The process took a few minutes but to Misa and L, it seemed like a lot longer. He looked at her tired form, barely holding herself up on that chair. She was face to face with one of the most powerful organizations in the world and regardless of the outcome, she had done well. Not to mention that no matter what he was determined to keep Misa with him at _any _cost. He just hoped that the ICPO wouldn't make it any harder on him and vote to put her in prison, or worse.

President Ferraro stood and looked at L and then at Misa. L was still as a rock, barely breathing, inwardly wishing that their efforts paid off.

"Misa Amane." Said the man sternly. Misa lifted her head up to look at him. Her heart felt as though it were caught in her throat and she thought she would pass out from the anticipation.

"As chief representative of the International Criminal Police Organization, I declare that you have been pardoned in the eyes of the law..."

At those words, Misa nearly collapsed from relief. She visibly relaxed in her chair and she had to choke back tears of joy. She lowered her head and smiled, thankful to be given this chance. L too was relieved because Misa would live, but he knew that there was more coming...

"But...you will not be free." Continued the President.

Misa looked up at him confused and horrified.

"As we all know, the world is endebted to detective L for bringing Kira to justice. However, she is still the second Kira and while she will never own a notebook of death again, we need a guarantee that she will never kill again. So we require that she remain a prisoner to detective L indefinitely..."

'_No!' _She thought frantically.

"...Under his close surveillance we trust that she will not commit any further transgressions. And if she does...then detective L shall be put to death as well as her. In other words, detective L, she is now your liability." Said the President with a serious look. "Also, she must check in with one of our agents every 6 months so that we may know where she is in case we need to find her. If there is any reason to suspect foul play of any sort, we will launch a world-wide manhunt for the two of you."

L nodded in agreement. It was all the same to him though, as he was perfectly capable of hiding from the ICPO if they ever doubted. He'd eluded their efforts to find him many times in the past. As for Misa, he was completely OK with having her as his 'prisoner.' Actually, to him it was ideal.

"Thank you" He said politely.

He turned to Misa, his new 'prisoner.' If it had been anyone else, he would have been annoyed over the arrangement, but since it was her, he was happy about it. Now Misa was bound to him, his, indefinitely. His mood visibly changed and he was in much better spirits than he had been since they departed from Japan. He walked toward her and took her handcuffed hands in his. He did it in a businesslike way for the ICPO, and Misa once again felt like an animal being paraded around. She knew she should have been grateful, and part of her was happy that she would be spared and somewhat free. However, something inside her rebelled against it. She didn't want this. She didn't want to be stuck as L's prisoner. It felt wrong to stay with him by force, especially after all the things he did to her. She wanted to cry out at the idea of her being stuck with someone who wronged her even more than Light. Not only that but her son would share the same fate. She had to do something. He tugged her gently to the side and she saw that he was leading her toward Watari.

"Watari, please take Miss Amane back to the hotel and keep an eye out for her. Take the guards if necessary."

_'Back to his hotel room, like his own personal, hand-delivered prize...' _She thought angrily. She stood her ground. L looked back at her curiously.

"Wait! I have something to say on the matter!" She blurted out. As usual, she had a half-cooked plan in her mind that she was now putting into motion. It may very well be foolish of her but she had to try it. She couldn't leave there in peace without having done everything she could to save herself from being forced to be with L forever. The President quirked a brow.

"Do you, now?" He said a bit condescending.

"Yes! I do!" She said defiantly, not looking at L who was wide-eyed, wondering what she was up to.

"But please, I would like to speak to you, all of you...alone, _without_ detective L in the room."

L was looking at her, puzzled, trying his hardest to decipher what she was up to. What did she think she was doing? He finally got her pardoned, was she trying to mess it all up?

"Misa, what are you doing? This isn't the time..." He whispered to her. She looked at him sadly but defiantly.

"This _is_ the right time, the only time, for what I need to do..." She told him. She saw the concern in his eyes and she felt herself being charmed again by those dark orbs. She whispered back to him "Thank you...for everything you did today."

"I don't understand-"

"Excuse us detective L, please wait outside so that the rest of us may hear what she has to say." Said the President. L turned to him.

"Yes, just one minute." He said quickly, taking Misa off to the side.

People gasped and shook their heads disapprovingly. It was an act of insolence on L's part to make the President wait after he'd requested he leave. But he didn't care about their stupid protocols, he had to find out what's going on.

"No. Exit _now_ or I will have the guards _escort_ you out at once." Pressed the President, raising his voice. L unwillingly released Misa's hands slowly. She almost regretted the loss of contact. He gave her one last longing look before walking out, passing Watari along the way.

..._Some time later..._

L was waiting outside the auditorium, sitting on a bench, when a door down a corridor opened. He looked in the direction of the opened door and heard familiar voices headed his way.

"...man! we waited in there for nothing! All they did was ask us to come in tomorrow to give our testimonies..." Said what sounded like Matsuda's voice.

" Exactly my point! Why the hell couldn't they have told us that 7 hours ago?! We wasted a whole day in there!" Said Aizawa turning the corner. It was the rest of the KIT members.

"L!" They all said in unison.

"So they did make you come in person" Said Matsuda.

"No, I chose to come here myself."

"So what's happened anyway? How's Misa? Did they get to her yet? I know they're not getting to Light until tomorrow..."

Before L could answer, the side door to the auditorium opened and Watari walked out of it, without Misa. L frowned, and noticed that Watari seemed rather uneasy.

"L, I need to speak with you, please come with me" Said the old man. L quickly sprang to his feet and followed Watari away from the group. Once they were out of earshot, Watari began.

_"_Please reconsider apologizing to Misa"

"...This again? I thought I was perfectly clear the first time."

"You are making a _huge_ mistake by not apologizing to Misa, perhaps the most foolish one you've made yet!"

"I..." He was taken aback. '_Where is this coming from?' _He wondered. "I don't believe so. I think you care too much, Watari, and besides, this is neither the appropriate time nor place to be discussing this. Now tell me what happened in there with Misa."

Watari took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eye. He wished he could tell him what had happened, that Misa, by some crazy formulation of hers, managed to strike a deal with Ferraro and the representatives. He wanted to tell him that she would be leaving him and staying under the surveillance of the ICPO. He wished he could tell him everything but he was sworn to not say anything. The only thing he could say was that the only way to fix this was if he showed Misa that he could be treat her better. Only then would she change her mind.

"Unfortunately, all I can say is that it is in your absolute best interest to talk to Misa and admit that you wronged her."

"For the last time, the answer is no." He was getting annoyed. He didn't see the point of having this discussion at a time like this. "Misa will just have to deal with it. She will not twist my will on this"

"You say that Misa has to deal with it, but why can't _you _do the same and yield just this once? She always has to submit to you but you won't do the same for her."

"Well, let's see..." He bit on his thumb and looked up, pretending to be thinking about it. "I'm going to go ahead and say that is a moot point. You seem to have forgotten that I have done _plenty _for Misa's sake. I'm here today, I have shown myself as L to hundreds of people, and, most importantly, I have risked my life for her numerous times. Now she wants me to get down on my knees and ask for her forgiveness? No. That's not going to happen. She'll have to deal with it."

"I understand, but you did wrong her."

L looked down thoughtfully.

"Yes, that's true, I did, for good reasons and I don't regret having done those things."

There was a long pause during which both men just looked at each other, waiting for one to cave. Watari broke the silence first.

"A few simple words would be all it takes"

L was starting to get bored with the conversation. This was going nowhere, all they were doing was go back and forth repeating the same damn thing.

"I can't and I won't. That would be hypocritical of me. In fact, if I were Misa, I would feel more insulted if I apologized, because I would be doing something dishonest and it was my dishonesty that angered her in the first place. If I apologize I would only be perpetuating that same pattern of behavior that led to this mess. Like I said, she'll get over it, now let's not talk about this again." He said turning away from the man.

Watari sighed and pursed his lips. This could go on forever, he knew. If L wasn't going to do things right by Misa, then there was nothing else to do. Watari was sure of one thing, though. His adoptive son would be sorry eventually, maybe in a few hours, maybe in a thousand days from now, but either way, it would be too late. Before more could be said, a representative of the ICPO called L back into the large conference room.

* * *

_**Writer's Note: **Hi everyone, so this whole ICPO business was all going to be crammed into one chapter. It was obviously mega long so I had to split it into two. I actually hate double part chapters so I never do it unless it's overwhelming. I think it was overwhelming as a reader, and as a writer trying to edit a 10,000 word chapter lol. Whatever, this is it for now. Misa is leaving L. I'll go into more details about exactly what she said to the ICPO later, she actually did a pretty smart thing haha. I hope you all enjoyed it so far, this is going to take a few twists here and there, and I can't wait. MUAHAHAHAHAHA! Till later and don't forget to review =) _


	26. Runaway

**Writer's Note:** _It's time for another chapter. Thank you all for your support! As always, don't forget to review :) _

* * *

While L was preoccupied at the trial, Watari drove Misa to the hotel to gather her belongings before leaving. For the first time in over a year, she would be completely free of L. At first, she felt numb. Then she cried, pouring her eyes out the entire ride back to L's hotel room. Even though she was bitter, angry, and crushed, part of her was in denial about being done with L. Any moment now, she expected to eat her words, run back to the ICPO headquarters, jump into his arms and tell him that she'll never, _ever_, leave him. It would be so easy for her to do that. But it would be wrong.

She sniffled and wiped her eyes as she went about the room, picking up her bags. Once she had everything, she stepped into the shower to wash off the stress of the previous day. The warm water rushed over her body like soothing hands massaging her tired frame. She held back the urge to bawl again, though it didn't matter if she did; her tears had run out.

'_Why__?' _She asked herself bitterly. '_Why does shit like this always happen to me? First my parents, then Light, then L and all this...my life is a joke.'_ She thought, watching the water run over her belly. She was so big now, she could no longer see her toes. She sighed.

She regretted her decision but only because it hurt her to leave him. She didn't want to. She knew she would miss his stupid panda eyes, his disheveled appearance, his quirky habits, his elusive smile, and even his stubbornness. She loved him. But he was bad for her, and most importantly, he just wasn't ready to love her or have a family with her. And that was what she needed from him. She needed him to be a father, and maybe even a husband...her lower lip quivered with her muffled cry. She fought it with everything she had and slid down to the floor of the tub, where she sat, curled up against the edge. With her head hung, Misa felt the water soak through her hair and run over her face as she thought back on what she'd done.

_-flashback-_

* * *

She saw him leave the auditorium. Now it was just her and the ICPO. Misa turned back to President Ferraro who was studying her carefully, and stepped closer to him.

"I have a favor to ask" She said. The President burst out laughing, with the others soon joining him in laughter. He leaned forward over his post and grinned while staring her down.

"You must be jesting." He said. When she didn't respond, he looked at the sea of representatives and said "This girl has barely escaped with her life and now she wants to make demands on us!"

The room filled with laughs again. Misa looked around nervously. She felt embarrassed to be in a spotlight with hundreds of people laughing at her but she was determined to make her case. The young mother-to-be swallowed her nerves, and turned to them with a serious look.

"Please, listen! I think you will be interested" She pleaded. The room slowly died down into modest chuckles. President Ferraro rubbed his temples and sighed.

"I highly doubt that, but go on. We don't have all day" He told her with a wave of his hand.

Misa took a moment to collect her thoughts. She wasn't sure that her plan would work, in fact she knew it was going to be a stretch, especially since she would have to exaggerate. A lot. She would also have to throw L under the bus a little, but to hell with it! He'd done it to her plenty of times! She cleared her throat and began.

"As you all heard earlier, detective L said that I'm an important member of the Kira taskforce. I personally helped him plan and carry out all of the missions that led to Kira's capture, and without my help, I doubt they would have caught Kira and the others as quickly as they did. L vouched for my great investigative abilities and he complimented my skills" She said.

"Yes, yes, we heard all of this from detective L already. What's your point?"

"Well...my point is that I could be useful to you. I want to remain under custody of the ICPO, but not as a prisoner. Instead, I'd like to give you my services as a detective!"

The room was dead silent as everyone wondered if she was serious.

"...you wouldn't even have to pay me! I would do it for free as payment for my actions...I have enough money to live off of from my modeling and acting career. Please, please, please, consider it! Catching bad guys is the least I can do to make up for what I've done, and I know I can be really useful to your organization with my experience and all that I learned from L."

The room then erupted into side conversations and mini-arguments.

"Everyone, silence please" Said President Ferraro. Once the room quieted down again, he addressed Misa.

"And tell me, why would we want you?"

"...Well...because I'm almost as good as L..." She lied blatantly. Watari looked on helplessly as Misa dug herself into a hole.

"...And I won't hide from you! That's important because as soon as we leave here, L will just disappear like he always does! You won't see him again, maybe ever. And good luck getting him to take just any case because he's really picky, but I'm sure you all knew that. I'll take any case that needs solving, you name it, I'm your girl!" She finished enthusiastically. There was an awkward pause. No one said a word and Misa's face dropped a little, thinking that she'd lost them.

Then one of the ICPO representatives spoke out.

"She has a point! L is extremely arrogant and he only takes cases he finds interesting!"

Another one interjected and said "Yes, but L is the best there is. What proof do we have that this girl is as good as she says?"

"L himself said that she was a huge help." Said another representative.

"Yes! Clearly she must be good or else he wouldn't have come here himself to have her pardoned!"

Misa looked around as people throughout the auditorium broke out into arguments over her. Before long, President Ferraro was forced to stand and call them to order once more. Misa knew that sooner or later she would have to prove her worth as a detective, but for now, this was her only chance to put distance between her and L. And who knows? Maybe she could be a decent detective. President Ferraro sat back down in his chair and looked at her.

"Alright. And what would you ask in return if we agree to this?"

"Only one thing." She gathered all her will power. "I don't want to see detective L...ever again." She finished shakily. She felt a pang of regret as soon as she'd said it. Her heart clenched under the weight of her words. What was she doing? She loved L with all her heart! She looked up and saw that Watari was quite shocked. Surely she'd broken his heart too.

"Hmm...interesting." Said President Ferraro. "That is a very curious request. Unfortunately, we will have to address the issue of why you want to hide from detective L at some other point...right now, I'm more concerned with who will be responsible for ensuring that you do not kill again. Obviously, if detective L doesn't know where you are, he cannot be held accountable for your actions."

"Ehh...good question." She said nervously. She hadn't thought about that small important detail. '_Well, there goes my brilliant plan_' she thought. Part of her was relieved, and part of her was terribly disappointed. Then someone spoke out for her.

"I will make myself responsible for her actions. Please hold me accountable." Everyone in the room turned to look at where the voice came from. It was Watari.

"Are you certain?" Asked the President. Watari nodded. Misa was shocked that Watari would do that for her and she mouthed a "thank you" to him. The old man smiled sadly at her, and just like that, Misa was no longer L's but a detective for the ICPO. When all was said and done, the guards escorted her out of the auditorium with Watari following closely behind. Once they were outside, the old man caught up to her.

"Misa" He said. "I hope you know what you're doing"

She looked down and shook her head. "I don't..." She said in a broken voice. "But he's not ready...and I've tried but this isn't working out..."

"Do you want me to talk to him?" The old man offered gently.

Misa's head quickly lifted to look at him with hopeful eyes.

"Yes! please..." She pleaded. Maybe if Watari talked to him, L would change...

_-end flashback-_

* * *

"So much for hoping..." She muttered sourly. A knock at the door brought her out of her reverie.

"Apologies Misa, but we really should get going, L could return at any moment." Said Watari through the door.

"Right! Coming!" She called out. Misa finished her shower, dressed herself and left the bathroom the same way it was before. She swept over the room one last time, when something caught her eyes. On a desk by the window, a familiar yellow item stuck out to her from underneath a pile a of papers. She moved toward the desk and stuck her hand under the pile of papers. She pulled out a sealed envelope and opened it. As she suspected, it was her sonogram pictures and the documents with her baby's information and estimated due date.

'_He didn't even open it!'_

This was like a slap in the face. He'd shoved his son's pictures and papers under some pile of junk stationery, without even looking at them. If there was any doubt in her mind of whether she was doing the right thing, it all evaporated then. Maybe she didn't have the guts to truly leave L before, but now, she was furious and determined.

She wiped her eyes angrily. '_I'm done crying for L Lawliet! That jerk doesn't deserve to be a father.'_

She clutched the envelope in her hands and walked out with Watari.

"Is something wrong?" Asked the old man.

"It's nothing..." She grumbled. Watari saw the envelope and he knew. He felt sorry for Misa, but even more so for his adoptive son, who had no idea what rude awakening he was about to experience. L was not going to like this one bit.

"If it's any consolation, you did splendid at the trial. I was especially impressed with the lie detector test, you were flawless." He commented, trying to raise her spirits.

"Yeah, well, I learned from the best liar there is." She said dryly.

They climbed into the car and headed for the airport.

..._Meantime, at the ICPO headquarters..._

It was the second half of the trial. The rest of the day was being dedicated to grilling Light about each and every detail of his rise, and fall, as Kira. There was just one problem though: Light wasn't cooperating, making things extremely tedious. L sat in a reserved section in the back, behind tinted glass, looking extremely bored. Watching Light's interrogation was like witnessing a dentist trying to pull someone's molars with his bare hands. He wasn't sure how much more of this he was willing to sit through.

Gloria paced around Light for what seemed like the tenth time. The brunette did not even look at her as he kept his head hung low. Like Mikami, he too looked disheveled, though much less deranged. Gloria asked him a question.

"Go to hell, lady." Said Light after a long pause.

"No, it is _you _who are going to hell to _pay _for _your _evil actions!" She yelled, frustrated. Light merely chuckled and taunted her.

"Are you angry?" He asked with feigned innocence. Gloria looked like she could kill him with her bare hands.

"This is going nowhere..." L muttered from his seat. Everyone knew that Light was guilty as he'd already confessed to being Kira. He just didn't feel like answering any questions, and because he was Soichiro Yagami's son, the ICPO was still giving him a fair interrogation before sentencing him.

It had been over an hour of fruitless questioning and truthfully, L couldn't care less about this trial anymore. He'd done his part already, and there was no real reason for him to be there. He could tell Watari to stay and update him on all the proceedings. Right now, All L wanted to do was take Misa away and leave this place for good. He looked forward to taking her back to England with him and showing her Wammy's House, the one place he'd ever called home. After that, he planned to revisit a few other special places with her.

'_Let's see, there's Prague, New Zealand, Fiji, Bordeaux...' _He listed in his head. The thought of taking her to those places thrilled him and soon he found himself counting the seconds until the break, which judging from the tired looks of the representatives, was drawing near.

His prediction proved right when, minutes later, Ferraro called for a break. Gloria stormed out of the auditorium, complaining loudly about how her talents were being wasted on this trial. L had to admit he felt some satisfaction at seeing Light tear this woman apart in front of everyone. He waited until all the representatives were gone and then exited through a separate door.

On his way out to find Misa, a familiar voice called to him.

"Hey! I've been looking for you!" Said Ryuk. "You want to know something funny?"

"Not particularly...though I sense that you're going to tell me anyway." Said the detective, checking the hallways for any signs of people watching.

"Oh I think you'll like it! It's really juicy information...and it's about Light, and Misa."

"What about them?"

Ryuk laughed some more. The Shinigami followed L as he walked into the holding area for prisoners. He passed Mikami and Takada's rooms. The guards there let him through.

'_Well, is he going to tell me or leave me wondering?' _Thought L, arriving at the door to Misa's room.

"_Ryuzaki._" Said another all-too familiar voice. L turned around and was face-to-face with Light, who was being escorted by a group of guards back to his cell.

L tipped his head. "Light." He was about to turn around when he noticed that something was different about Light. The detective couldn't quite put a finger on it, but something about the way the brunette looked at him was different...'_His eyes...' _

Ryuk's sinister cackle caught L's attention again.

"Yes...Light made the deal for the Shinigami eyes..._twice!_" He said laughing some more. Light's lips lifted into a faint smirk.

L didn't like that. He turned to the guards and said "Could you leave us? I want to speak to him"

They looked at each other uncertainly. Light was in chains, cuffed by the hands and feet but they still couldn't risk him being loose, so they insisted that L go into the cell with him if they wanted to talk. Light stepped into the plain room with a single cot and no windows. L followed after him, not the least bit worried about being locked in a room with a mass murderer. The door clicked shut and a tense silence came soon after.

"Why did you do it? What was the purpose of cutting your natural lifespan in half twice at this point?" Asked L.

"Because I should have died but thanks to _you_, I have to endure this _humiliation_." He said coldly.

"I understand. Although, it's a waste since they'll certainly give you the death penalty. If it's death you want, then you don't have much to worry about, my friend." Replied L. Light frowned.

"I don't want to take any chances." He said seriously. "And you don't have to pretend that we're friends in here. You know as well as I do that there's no love lost between us. I despise you as much as you despise me."

"Actually, you're mistaken." Said L, looking thoughtful. Light narrowed his eyes as L explained.

"I think we were evenly matched. I can't recall a time when I've felt more akin to someone before this case came along. I owe you my gratitude. It was nice to know that there was someone else who was just like me." He said a bit sadly. Light's face flashed with anger.

"Stop it! I'm nothing like you!" Said Light, getting upset. "You and I may think at the same level, but we're _nothing _alike. You don't believe in justice, you don't care about anything other than amusing yourself! Justice isn't your motivation, it's your _hobby_. If it were anything more than that you would have seen the world _my_ way!"

L looked at Light a bit surprised. "There may be some truth to that..." He said, barely above a whisper.

"Then why?! Tell me, oh-great-L, why did you take this case?" Asked Light, frustrated. L looked him straight in the eyes.

"I took this case because I knew that it would be a challenge." He answered simply. Light was angry.

"See?! Do you see what you've done?! This world could have been GOOD if you hadn't stepped in to SMASH it all! Now what hope do we have? What justice is there for the _innocents_ now that Kira is gone?!" He yelled, wild-eyed.

"What you did was evil, Light." Said L, shocking the brunette. "You tried to establish yourself as some divine ruler to undermine the judicial system, which as imperfect as it is, you are more so because you are _not _infallible and you are _not _a god. You're just an overzealous, naive boy, _pretending _to be god, thinking that you're better than any court because you're so smart and hard-working. But you're wrong. You're not fit to condemn anybody and what's more, you wanted to suffocate the world beneath Kira's heel and that's not justice. That is fear and oppression" He said firmly.

Light was speechless.

"And yes, I may have been drawn to this case out of curiosity and a selfish desire to be challenged, but the bottom line is, I saved a lot of precious human lives." Said L.

Light covered his ears and yelled in anger. "Shut up! You don't understand anything!"

The brunette was breathing heavily as he took in everything that L had told him. '_Oppression? Fear? That's not true...only the evil people had to be fearful and oppressed!' _He thought. Then a separate voice in his head whispered '_Yes. But what about Ray Penber, and those twelve FBI agents, and Naomi Misora...they were innocent...' _A cold sweat dampened Light's brow as names of innocent people that he'd killed in Kira's wake popped into his head. '_No! Those people got in the way. They were obstructing Kira's rightful judgement. That made them evil so they paid with their lives!' _He thought, trying to justify himself. L woke him from his reverie.

"Light, would you care to know what led to your downfall, which by the way, was inevitable?"

Light stepped back suddenly as if he'd forgotten that L was still there. "Wh-what?" He said shakily.

"It was Misa." Answered L. "If she had not come into the picture, you would have continued to act alone, making you virtually impossible to catch. But when Misa assumed the mantle of Second Kira, she threw a wrench in your plans. She was a liability that you had to factor into your perfect little schemes and because of her, you had to get Higuchi and Mikami involved. That left you vulnerable on several fronts as you probably already guessed."

Light had come to the same conclusion at one point during his confinement. If he had continued to act alone, without Misa, Mikami, or Higuchi, L wouldn't have learned about the Shinigami, or gotten a hold of the death notes. Without those things, the Kira case would have been impossible to solve, and he, Light Yagami, would have been on his way to building the new world. _'That dumb bitch ruined me...' _He thought bitterly. The brunette turned his head slowly toward L.

"...L...get out of here before I choke you with this chain." He said in a dangerous tone. L stood his ground for a moment longer.

"It's a shame, Light Yagami. We could have made a great team." Said L.

"There's something we can agree on, now _get out. Leave._" He said. This time L listened and left the cell, silently bidding goodbye to his first friend.

-_At__ the airport-_

Misa, Watari, and an ICPO agent were at the gate for the next Japan-bound plane. The agent was supposed to travel with Misa as her "husband" and his purpose was to help her get all her documents and belongings from Japan. From there, he would see her off to her new permanent location: The U.S.A.

"You know, Watari, I'm glad they're sending me there. My mom was American and she took me there almost every summer to visit family..." She said fondly. Watari gave her a small smile.

"I'm glad that you will be comfortable there" He said. "Now remember, try to leave Japan as soon as possible. L will undoubtedly try to find you so it's important that you get out of there as soon as you can."

She nodded seriously as her "husband" stepped forward and said something to Watari in French. Misa grimaced and looked at Watari.

"What the frick did he just say?!" She asked. '_I just love how the ICPO, gives me a "husband" that doesn't speak English or Japanese. Seriously, screw my luck.' _She thought, annoyed. Watari chuckled a little and gestured toward the man.

"Cedric here says that once you're in Japan he will take care of everything and you should be headed toward the U.S. within 48 hours, maximum."

"Ooh...OK, sounds good." She said looking at her travel companion. The man was in his later 20's, maybe early 30's, tall, slender, with nice wavy brown hair and tanned skin. He looked at her and said in broken English "Sorry, I'll try to be a good flight buddy" Misa smiled at Cedric. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all.

"Alright!" She said before walking up to Watari and giving him a clumsy, pregnant-woman-hug. The old man leaned down and returned the hug.

"Thank you so much for everything Watari, I know this puts you in a weird position with not being able to tell L anything. I'm so sorry" She said. Watari sighed and said "I believe my son is about to learn a much needed lesson in humility. Take care, and please, from now on, call me Wammy." Misa's smile brightened upon hearing his real name.

"I will! Wammy..." She said. Wammy raised his finger to stop her from going.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Before you go, take this. It's very important!" He said, pressing a device that looked like a cell phone into her hand. She looked at it, examining it.

"It's a satellite phone. It uses signal from orbiting satellites instead of from terrestrial cell phone towers so it will work anywhere on earth. I will keep you updated on L's activities once he decides to look for you. That way you'll know what to watch out for."

She cradled the phone in her hands and thanked him profusely with a bow. "You're the best, Watari!" She said, almost getting teary-eyed. She knew how much this meant to him, since L was like a son to him.

"Don't mention it. I promised that I would help you hide from L and that is what I will do. Also, I want to give you this..." Said the old man, extending his hand and depositing a golden credit card into her palms.

"What's this?" She asked.

"It's a credit card for any expenses that you or the baby may incur. It's linked to a special part of L's trust fund that I set aside for this purpose."

Misa was surprised that Watari would trust her with such a thing. Once again, she bowed in gratitude, but refused to take it.

"...I can't accept this." She said, giving it back to him.

"Oh no, please, blow all his money if you want to! It's the least he can do for the two of you!" He said with a twinkle in his eyes. Misa laughed but she still refused it, just on principle.

"I don't want anything from L, Wammy. I want to do this completely on my own. But thank you, really." She said. The old man sighed.

"Well, if you're sure...please keep it with you. Even if you decide to not use it." He told her.

Misa had no intention of ever using the card, but if it made Wammy feel better, then she would keep it. The intercom called for all the passengers to the overnight, Japan-bound plane. She said her last goodbyes, took her fake husband by the arm and walked to the boarding gate. Watari watched them depart with sadness. He sincerely hoped that Misa finds happiness in these next coming times ahead of her, and that her plan doesn't blow up in her face. Being a detective was going to be hard for her, he knew it. He silently wished her luck, as she'd already had enough disappointments in life, and enough was enough. He turned around to leave when his phone rang. Wammy took out his cell phone and got his alibi ready. It was L.


	27. Incognito

**Writer's Note: **_Hi guys. Sorry for having to repost this chapter. There was some issue before and the chapter disappeared for whatever reason so I figured that I would try to re-post it and see if that would fix things. Apologies to those of you who've already read it. For those who haven't, here's the next chapter for you reading pleasure! It's an interesting one, I think, so please leave a review at the end! I wanna know what you guys think of it.  
_

* * *

"Yup. She's gone. Left with some guards to who-knows-where?" Said Ryuk, casually floating around. "I didn't follow her or anything..."

L bit his thumb, anxiously. There was a good chance that his day was about to be ruined.

"Rem! Please come" he said. Rem appeared. "Where is Misa?" He asked her.

The bony Shinigami gave L a blank stare and looked inside the empty room where Misa should have been.

"She is not here."

"...Yes, I can see that for myself, it doesn't take Shinigami Eyes to make note of that." He said sharply. Rem narrowed her eyes at him and Ryuk laughed.

"Oooh somebody's in a bad mood" He said in between dark chuckles. This time, L didn't waste his breath on the troublesome Shinigami. He needed to figure out what happened to Misa. But first, he needed something else desperately: sweets.

He walked out of the ICPO headquarters with both the Shinigami still following him. L didn't say a word to them as he wandered into one of the nearby bakeries. Even though the store was well stocked with many different delicacies, L settled for something a bit more practical. He bought a lollipop. As soon as he walked out of the store, he popped it into his mouth, instantly feeling better, and walked towards a fancy hotel across the street.

'_Ok, now that I can think properly...' _His thoughts raced as he walked into the hotel. '_Misa's gone, surely as a result of some interference by the ICPO. What could it have been?' _There was only one way to find out.

He walked closely behind a group of people that had just checked into the hotel and managed to get past the security as he boarded the elevator along with them. The other people in the group eyed him wearily but before they could say anything, L arrived at his destination, on the 10th floor.

President Ferraro was surprised to see L standing at his door, and with the two Shinigami following behind him.

"Detective L!" He said, wide-eyed. "How did you-?"

"-know you were here?" said L, finishing his sentence.

"Yes, I didn't tell anyone that I was staying at this hotel..."

L looked at him with deflated eyes."Do you really have to ask?" He said dryly. President Ferraro did not miss the edge in his tone.

"Of course..." Said the man, acknowledging the frivolity of his question. "One should expect no less from you, L. Anyway, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?" He asked, but then held up his hand to prevent him from speaking. "Wait, no, don't tell me. It's about Misa Amane, isn't it?" He said, taking a seat in an overly stuffed armchair. L removed the lollipop from his mouth.

"Bingo." He said, holding the candy delicately. "What happened to her?"

"Ah. You want to know where she is." Said Ferraro, looking smug because he knew something L didn't. "Well I can't tell you that because she is in our custody now, and you are not to see her or speak to her any longer, is that understood?"

Yes, L's day was well on its way to being ruined.

"And why is that?"

"That's none of your business, detective. Why do you care so much about Misa Amane anyway?"

L was getting irritated. "With all due respect, why I care about her is none of your business either, Ferraro. May I also remind you that I offered my life as collateral to ensure that Misa never kills again. Obviously, I value my life and I damn well want to make sure she's not put in a situation where doubts might be raised. So...let's try this again. Where is Misa Amane?"

Ferraro's brow knit together at L's impertinence. It was bad enough that the detective showed up at his hotel suite unexpectedly, especially after he took extensive precautions to cover his whereabouts. Ferraro was a man who prided himself in being difficult to find so the fact that L found him so easily was bothersome. Then to top it off, there he stood, looking languid as ever, demanding information from him. This, Ferraro could not tolerate.

"Do not challenge me detective L. You may be the world's greatest detective, and a hero, many might say, in light of your recent accomplishments. But don't forget who _I am. _And I will not take your audacity in coming here to press me for information lightly. Now, I suggest that you, and your monsters there, take your leave before I call my personal guards. They don't take kindly to intruders threatening me in my own rooms." Ferraro said menacingly. L took a long drag of his lollipop, mulling over Ferraro's words. So that's how it was going to be. He sighed.

"So I'm not allowed to go after her or see her ever again?" Asked L.

"That's correct. Any obligations you had in regards to Misa Amane have been revoked. You have no business whatsoever with that woman now."

L's heart hurt upon hearing those words.

"And what will you do if I look for her?" He said.

"Don't bother. You might be the greatest detective on earth but I'm sure even you can't go toe to toe against a police force that extends across all the countries covered under the ICPO. I assure you, you'd be wasting your time if you tried"

"So you will mobilize agents across countries just to keep me from finding her?"

"That's right." Ferraro said smugly.

"Why? What do you gain from this?"

"That is for me to know. Like I said, it's none of your business what use we have for her."

There was a long pause, during which L sucked on his treat, sizing up the situation.

"Very well, I understand." He said. "Would you mind answering one last question?"

"It depends. What is it?"

"If you were me, where would you go now and what would you do there?"

President Ferraro looked at him suspiciously. "You're asking me what to do now?"

"In a way...yes. I will value your opinion." Said L.

"Alright. I recommend that you remain in France, try to relax, and unwind from this case. That's what I would have you do."

L's expression lifted ever so slightly, as if he'd just caught something very important. He nodded his head and said "Thank you President Ferraro, you've been of great help. I can honestly say that I feel much better because of it." and with those parting words, he turned and left the room. On his way down, L stopped at a different floor and locked himself inside one of the fancy bathrooms. He took out a small marker from his back pocket and got to work. If he had to go to war with Ferraro and the ICPO, then so be it.

"Hey what are you doing?" Asked Ryuk. L was crouched down on the floor of the bathroom, scribbling some lines on a piece of paper towel.

"I'm thinking" He said dismissively, drawing a couple of X's on the paper, each symbolizing a country. He then drew three other X's around the first two and looked at his handiwork, lost in thought.

'_After speaking with __Ferraro, I'm 99% sure that Misa isn't in France anymore. He knows that I wouldn't give up on finding her so easily, and on that premise, he would never recommend that I stay in France if Misa were here, within my reach.' _He swished the lollipop in his mouth as he picked apart his conversation with Ferraro. '_Not only that, but the rest of the ICPO would not mobilize their agents for someone on French territory. That's the French representative's job. So she's definitely gone elsewhere...'_ He glanced back down at the paper and started to draw on it again.

"...We're here in France...and Japan's twelve hours away..." He mumbled, through the lollipop in his mouth as he drew an arrow from the 'X' representing France to the 'X' representing Japan.

L looked at the other X's on his makeshift 'map' as Ryuk peered over his shoulder.

"Oh I see, those are locations! You're going to look for her aren't you?" Said the curious Shinigami.

"Shhh-"

Ryuk looked at him and laughed. "How are you planning to find her like this? She could be anywhere in the world!"

L looked at him and cocked his head a little. "Not really. Ferraro mentioned that the ICPO has Misa in their custody, so she must be in one of their member countries. That narrows down our list of countries slightly. But then, if you discard the non-English, non-Japanese speaking countries where Misa would not function well, along with all impoverished or developing countries that she would never go to, then the list becomes quite manageable." He explained. "In fact, I'm positive she's either in Japan, the United Kingdom, The United States, or Australia."

"Oh, and you managed to deduce all that just from talking to Ferraro?" Asked the Shinigami, scratching his head in confusion. Ryuk had heard everything Ferraro said but none of it stood out as useful information. L paid no mind to Ryuk as he continued to look at the map he'd drawn, tracing lines from the X representing Japan, to all the other X's. Finally, L wrote some numbers down on each line. They were hours, measuring how long it would take to fly from one 'X' country to another.

'_Depending on where she goes, I either have a 32-50 hour window to catch up to her, or a 12-20 hour window. And that's assuming that I guess the country she's in correctly...' _Thought L, starting to chew on the lollipop. '_...or there's always option 2...' _He bit down hard on the lollipop, crushing it into sugary bits. '_...which will it be?' __  
_

He came to a decision, stood up, and crumpled the 'map', throwing it away.

"Hey, wait up!" Said Ryuk, following quickly behind L. The detective picked up his cell phone and called Watari.

From the airport, Watari received L's call.

"Ryuzaki, is there something you need?"

"Yes, where are you right now?"

"At the hotel's reception." He lied. "There was a lovely continental dinner tonight I absolutely had to attend"

L did not question it.

"Watari, the ICPO relocated Misa without my knowledge. I need you to purchase four-no make it five- cell phones and two plane tickets to Japan immediately."

The old man's eyes widened. Did L already figure out that Misa was on her way to Japan? Honestly, it wouldn't surprise him.

"Why Japan?" Watari asked.

"I have reason to believe that she will go to Japan first. If the ICPO intends to hide her from me then they'll want to destroy all hard documents and public records related to Misa Amane, all of which are currently in Japan. It's standard procedure, pretty predictable on their part."

"Understood. I will obtain what you need right away" Said Watari.

"Please do." Said L before hanging up with a click.

The old man sighed, tired. Playing both sides was going to be difficult, especially because he's essentially going up against L.

-_Later that night- __  
_

"I'm impressed, you're taking this rather well. I didn't expect you to be so methodical about this..." commented Ryuk. L sat in his hotel room, finishing up the last of his phone calls to agents in Japan, the UK, the US, and Australia. Each cell phone corresponded to a group of agents deployed in each country for the purpose of hunting down Misa.

"I am worried." He said, biting his nail, staring out the window. "But you must also consider the fact that I'm L, and I've never had any issues finding my targets."

L was in full detective swing now, and as high as the stakes were, this is what he lived for: the thrill of the chase.

"I'm a detective, and Misa is a pop idol on the run who happens to be very pregnant and easy to spot. Finding her should be no trouble. It should be cake." He said, looking toward a cart piled high with cake. Still, L wasn't touching any of it. While part of him was enthralled with this new challenge, something was bothering him.

The ICPO may have pulled a fast one on him, but above that, L could not get over the fact that this must have been Misa's idea. Why else would the ICPO change their decision so abruptly? It now made sense to him why she asked him to leave the court room and why Watari asked him to apologize. Misa was angry with him and so she left him. She actually left him...that alone was enough to make him lose his appetite. Regardless, L fully intended to catch up to her and apologize once and for all. He missed her, and if apologizing would make her come back, then he could find it in himself to swallow his pride just this once.

The door clicked open and Watari walked in.

"Ryuzaki, the jet is ready for us to depart." He informed.

"Perfect. Thank you." Said L, jumping to his feet. He walked over to a pile of papers on the desk by the window and stuck his hand underneath, searching for something that was no longer there. The yellow envelope was missing. L observed the pile with a hint of a frown on his face. '_Misa was here...no one else would have taken that envelope without knowing its significance.' _That she had taken the envelope knowing that he had not even opened it was worrisome. It was then that L realized just how imperative it was that he find her as soon as possible.

"Let's go, Watari."

-_Two days later-_

"We're almost there! This is so exciting!" said Misa. Cedric's lips curved into a smile. After two days straight of traveling from France, to Japan, to the U.S., the two had become quite friendly with each other. As it turned out, Cedric was a French ICPO agent who couldn't speak a lick of Japanese and spoke limited English, though he understood it well. When Misa poured her heart out to him, he could do little more than give her a sympathetic look and nod his head, but it was enough. She turned to him with an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry for talking your head off this entire flight. I had a lot to get off my chest, and you're a good listener!"

"It's OK." He said, smiling. He carefully formed his next statement and said "I wanted to have talked more. But you're-"

He was interrupted mid sentence by a strong vibrating sound. Misa felt the special phone that Watari gave her vibrate and light up. She looked at it and gasped.

"L sent agents to scout every major international airport in the US?!" She read out loud, turning to Cedric with a panicked look. "I'm so screwed! What was I thinking?! He's gonna find me!"

Cedric looked just as surprised as she was. It appeared that L was willing to part the seas if he had to, in order to find her.

"Don't worry" He said, taking her hand to reassure her. She received another message from Watari; this time it contained a picture file of a handsome man with crystal blue eyes and dark hair. The name on the picture was "Gevanni, Stephen" and the message read, "Beware of this man, he's at your airport."

"Damn!" She said, showing the picture of the man to Cedric. He scowled.

Their plane landed fifteen minutes later, and they wasted no time in heading for the concourse. Cedric took Misa's hand as they quickly traversed the pockets of people at the airport. In the most crowded part, a woman side stepped in front of them, blocking their path.

"Cedric Beaulieu?"

Cedric instinctively reacted to hearing his name, and looked at the woman suspiciously. She was a tall, slender blonde, who looked about 25, with sharp golden eyes that looked like she meant business.

"My name is Halle Lidner and I'm with the American division of Interpol. I will be taking her from here" She said, glancing at Misa. Cedric held on tighter to Misa's hand, refusing to let her go.

"I was not told this"

Lidner scoffed. "I'm not surprised. You're from the French division aren't you? You guys aren't very organized. Misa Amane is to be under my protection and surveillance from this point on so your services are no longer needed." She moved to take Misa from Cedric.

"I need proof" He said firmly, pulling Misa closer to him.

"Listen French boy, don't test me. I'm under strict orders and I'm not in the mood to do you any favors." Said Lidner.

Misa didn't know what to think. For all they knew, this woman could be one of L's agents, in which case he already knew her location. She was seriously contemplating running away into the nearest crowd, but she knew she wouldn't get far, not in her state. The two agents stared each other down, as if daring the other to make a move. It was Cedric who cracked first as he dragged Misa into a mad dash for the nearest crowd.

"Son of a bitch!" cursed Lidner, taking off right after them. The people around them gasped and stepped away in confusion and alarm. Misa squealed as they clumsily dodged mountains of luggage, airport personnel and travelers in their awkward run up some escalators. She couldn't keep up with Cedric and when Misa turned back, she saw that Lidner was nearly on them.

Meanwhile, Stephen Gevanni was standing at the main exit for the concourse, scanning the mass of people for his target. He was dressed in a business suit, posing as a business man on a trip. Just when he was about to change locations, a commotion caught his attention. A crowd of people was quickly moving away from what looked like a chase scene up some elevator stairs. A suited woman was running after what looked like a couple. Gevanni looked on as the woman caught up to the couple, taking hold of the pregnant blonde woman.

"How strange..." He muttered, walking toward the scene. "Could it be?..." He got his cell phone ready.

Lidner caught Misa by the wrist and glared daggers at Cedric. "Are you crazy attracting so much attention like this?!" She hissed. Cedric said something in rapid fire French, and it didn't sound too friendly. Lidner responded by tugging Misa by the arm in her direction, while Cedric did the same.

"STOP PULLING ME LIKE I'M A RAG DOLL!" Misa yelled before addressing Lidner. "Lady, are you with L or not?!"

"What?"

"Answer the question" Pressed Cedric.

"I told you who I am!"

Cedric did not look convinced.

"Fine! I'll show you my badge and give you my identification number, but just don't run!" She said. Lidner passed Cedric her badge and he verified the number through his phone. It was genuine; the woman was telling the truth. He sighed and slowly released Misa. He'd only known her for two days but already he felt that she was someone very special.

"Well this is goodbye, Misa" He told her regretfully. Misa did not miss the look of sadness written on his face.

"Oh, you don't have to be sad. I'll be fine! Besides it's not a goodbye-forever-type-thing, it's more like a see-you-later!" She told him.

Cedric was hesitant for a moment, his eyes darting nervously from her lips to her eyes. Oblivious, Misa stepped in for a parting hug when Cedric leaned in for a kiss. She caught his intention at the last second and moved her head slightly so that he ended up kissing her cheek.

"Sorry..." He said, embarrassed as he stepped away. Misa couldn't look him in the eye.

"Cedric...I can't." She said looking down with a frown on her face.

"I know. Sorry..." He said, running a hand through his wavy hair in frustration. After a long silence, he sighed, and let it go. "Goodbye, Misa" He said walking away, leaving her alone with Lidner.

"Well that was interesting." Commented the female agent as she watched Cedric disappear through the crowd. She looked at Misa who was still looking at the ground, also looking frustrated.

"Now, for a proper introduction, I'm Halle Lidner, your warden. For now."

"Hi, I'm Misa Amane. Um, you're being followed-" She took out the special phone and showed Lidner "-by this man."

Lidner grimaced in confusion as she looked at the phone. "What?" She turned around and as soon as she did, she locked eyes with the man in the picture right as he arrived up the escalator. Misa gasped, and Lidner froze for a moment, thinking of what to do next. However, before she could come up with anything, Misa grabbed Lidner by the arm and broke out into an awkward run, hauling the woman with her.

"What are you-"

"I have an idea! But I need my luggage" Said Misa, breathing heavily. Gevanni saw the two women retreat further back into the concourse and he followed at a quick pace, keeping them in his sight. As he did so, he pressed a number on his phone, sending a signal to his contractor.

After retrieving Misa's rolling bag, the two women made a beeline for the women's bathroom. They dashed into it panting from the exertion. Misa was in much worse shape than Lidner.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Misa nodded her head briskly, catching her breath and supporting herself against the bathroom sink. Sprinting was probably not something she should be doing at 8 months pregnant.

"I know this is not a good time, but who the hell is that guy? And why is he following us?" Asked Lidner.

"I don't know who he is-" Misa answered breathlessly-"He's following me. L is looking for me."

At the mention of L, Lidner's eyes went wide.

"What? L as in detective L, the top detective in the world, the one who just solved the Kira case?!"

Misa nodded again. "You know about that?"

Lidner looked at Misa like she had three heads.

"Of course! Everyone knows about Kira, and detective L, though no one knows who L is or exactly what happened with Kira. All we know is that L caught him and the ICPO took care of it quietly. Then I got assigned to this mission, to find out that you're running from L?!"

"Yup"

"...fuck." Said Lidner. She walked to the bathroom door and peeked outside, and surely enough, there was their stalker, Gevanni, waiting for them. She sighed and shook her head. "They didn't tell me any of this at the bureau. This is too much, even for me. I'm sorry, I have to make a phone call."

Misa started digging through her luggage as Lidner stepped into a corner to call her superior. The female agent sounded distressed as she described the situation. "...yes we're being followed...we're trapped in a bathroom...Stephen Gevanni...wait, you can't be serious...I can't do this, I can't go up against L by myself!...you're not sending backup?!..." Lidner argued over the phone for a few more minutes before hanging up and slumping down next to Misa, who was done rummaging through her things.

"Well, it looks like it's gonna be you and me..." Said Lidner, defeated. "Now what? We gotta get out of here..."

Misa perked up and handed Lidner some clothes, a red wig, and other accessories.

"I have just the thing! We're going incognito!" Said Misa with determination. Lidner's face scrunched in distaste as she eyed the clothes that Misa had given her. Once again, she sighed in defeat.

"Well, I suppose this is our best shot." She said as she went into one of the stalls to change out of her pantsuit. A few minutes later, Lidner emerged from the stall, dressed in a black tanktop with a frilly skirt with skulls on it, black lace gloves that went up to her elbows, black shoes and black and white striped stockings. To top it off, she was now wearing a red wig with red lipstick.

"I look disgusting"

"No, you look cute!" Said Misa giggling. "Don't forget the glasses!" She passed Lidner the final accessory. The agent studied herself in the mirror with a mixture of awe and disbelief.

'I don't even recognize myself..."

"Yay! That's the point" Commented Misa, admiring Lidner in her clothes. "I haven't been able to fit into those in months, so enjoy" She said, putting the finishing touches on her own disguise. She donned a short black wig, glasses of her own, and a large overcoat that hid her belly a little more.

Outside the bathroom, Gevanni was getting impatient. He picked up his phone and scrolled through the pictures of Misa Amane, sent to him by his contractor. '_Yes, it definitely looked like her, but it could have been someone that looks similar too...I couldn't get a good enough look...' _Gevanni heard his transceiver blip as it usually did whenever he was about to receive orders or information from his contractor.

"Gevanni" Said L's voice masked by a vocoder. "I received your signal. What is it?"

Gevanni whispered into the transceiver. "Something really weird is happening here. I think I found the person you're looking for, but I could be wrong."

L's heart skipped but he remained serious. Ever since he'd dispatched the agents, he'd gotten about a dozen possible Misa sightings, all which proved to be false. He would check up on this one as well, but without direct visual, it would be tough and that particular airport didn't store their surveillance videos on a server that he could access, which was troublesome. They were kept in the airport as hard copies which he would need to physically retrieve in order to analyze.

"Why do you think so?"

Gevanni explained everything up to the point where he'd cornered the two women in the bathroom. L was silent.

"That is strange." He said. "Good work Gevanni. Please stay there and give me a visual of the women if you can. Oh, and be aware that Misa Amane may disguise herself, so use your imagination when comparing people to the pictures."

"Right" He said, and with that, L's voice was gone. Gevanni held up his phone in such a way that it would record anyone who came out of the bathroom. A minute later a red-head in a gothic lolita outfit came stumbling out of the bathroom, walking right into him.

"Hey, what the-" He said as the woman took his arm and turned him around, away from the bathroom. "-hey! What are you doing?!"

"I'm sorry sir! Could you _please_ tell me where gate number 165 is? I've completely lost my way!"

"I don't know, ask someone else!" Snapped Gevanni, pulling his arm free from the woman. While this was happening, Misa was sneaking out of the bathroom. Gevanni turned back around but his view was obstructed by the red-headed woman once again.

"How rude! Why are you stalking the women's bathroom anyway? Are you some kind of pervert?! I should call the police on you!" Said Lidner.

...

From the Kira investigation Headquarters in Japan, L sat in front of a laptop monitor, observing the video feed from Gevanni's phone. About 50-60 computer monitors surrounded him, all with footage being sent from the other agents. He pressed his thumb to his lips, as he watched the scene between Gevanni and the red-headed woman play out.

"What an annoying woman..." He said to himself. Watari watched from behind L, with a look of consternation. L continued to watch even though the video feed was being obstructed by the woman.

"...hmm...those clothes, they look familiar." He muttered, immediately thinking of Misa in them. L took a still frame of the woman's face and imported the image to a separate laptop. He turned back to the video and frowned.

"This looks too contrived, too much like a distraction..." He said to himself. He pressed a button on the laptop and spoke.

"Gevanni! Lose that woman now and go into the bathroom." Ordered L. Gevanni froze in place as the woman gave him an earful about his behavior. He knew this would look bad, but he had a job to do.

"Sorry, my wife is in there. Gate 165 is that way" He said pointing in the opposite direction from the bathroom. Now the woman had no excuse to stay. With that Gevanni walked into the women's bathroom. Luckily there was no one else in there so he could check every stall without running into trouble.

"There's no one in here!" He said, surprised. "But how?! I saw them come in here...unless-"

L narrowed his eyes. Gevanni ran back outside the bathroom only to find that the red-headed woman was gone. He looked around everywhere, but could not find her.

"...it appears you've been deceived." Said L through the transceiver. Gevanni was flabbergasted, humiliated.

"It's fine." Said L. "I ran a search for that strange woman's face through all law enforcement agency databases and I just found a match. It might surprise you."

L sent the file to Gevanni, who opened it immediately.

"That's her! The woman from before!" He said, looking at the image.

"Yes, I too had my doubts about her attire. Her name is Halle Bullook, alias Halle Lidner; please follow her closely. I will send you the rest of her information shortly. That is all for now." Said L, leaving Gevanni to ponder over this defeat.

* * *

**Writer's Note:** _Hey guys, thanks for reading this chapter! So I really wanted to show L in action after he gets going on a new case. I hope it wasn't too confusing. I was iffy on writing this much for this chapter and honestly I originally was going to omit this whole part altogether and have a major time gap. But then I thought that it wouldn't be fair if I just skipped over L's awesomeness haha. Anyway, I tried to avoid writing all the minute details of L's thought process, so if something was confusing, please let me know and I'll be happy to clarify! Till next time!_


	28. Flood

**Writer's Note: **_Thanks to all my reviewers for your valuable input on last chapter (and those before as well). I really appreciate the feedback as it helps me refine the chapters in terms of content and writing. If I ever go too far or write something weird, I'm trusting you guys to let me know haha. Anyways, enjoy this next chapter. Btw, just wanted to throw out there for no particular reason that could possibly be a spoiler that Mello's real name in the Death Note series is Mihael Keehl. That's all, I'm not saying anything more. _

* * *

Halle Lidner peered out of her apartment window. It was the dead of night and not a soul was out around her neighborhood, except for a man in a black car parked directly outside her residence. She sighed. A week had passed since their encounter at the airport and not a day had gone by without Stephen Gevanni hot on their trail.

"Yep, that's definitely him again" Said Halle, looking straight at the dark car. Misa groaned and sat up on the couch.

"Is he even trying to hide the fact that he's spying on us anymore?" She said, exasperated. Halle shook her head.

"Apparently not."

The younger blonde rolled her eyes and plopped back down on the couch.

While Halle counter-spied on Gevanni, Misa lounged on the sofa, reading a magazine and eating chocolate-covered strawberries. Finally, she had found a place where she could be comfortable and relatively calm. The day that she came to live with Halle, she'd told her everything about her parents' deaths, the Kira case, and about her being the Second Kira. Surprisingly, Halle didn't judge her, and for the first time in a long time, Misa felt liberated. Sure it was annoying that she had a spy, but that was no different than having a stalker, which sadly, she was used to dealing with. Besides, things were working out so far. Halle went about her daily activities as usual, and on the rare times that Misa needed to go out, she wore a heavy disguise, never once showing her face directly.

"What a silly man. I don't know what he's thinking being so open like this." Said Halle, releasing the curtain and sitting on the arm chair by the couch. There was a coffee table in front of it, where tea awaited her. She sat down and began to pour herself some.

"I still can't believe that you actually know L." She said. Misa couldn't help but smile upon hearing his name.

_'My stupid panda...' _

"He's like an urban legend at the bureau. Everyone always speculates about him, what he looks like, how old he is, whether he's even a man. You're one of the few people in the world who can actually answer those questions." Said Halle in wonderment. "So what's he like?"

Misa continued to smile and then scrunched her face, thinking hard of a good way to describe L without going into a long-winded explanation.

"Well...he's not what you'd expect"

Halle lifted an eyebrow, dissatisfied with Misa's vague answer. "I see...so you and him...you know..."

A deep blush painted Misa's cheeks as she nodded her head.

"Ah, so he's the father."

"Yup. Both a beautiful and unfortunate thing..." Said Misa.

Halle observed Misa with a mixture of pity and admiration. It had been a while since she'd talked to someone on a personal level like this. She'd been living a solitary life for over a year now without so much as seeing her family. Naturally, she couldn't help but think of Misa as almost like a little sister in need of her guidance.

"Hey, can I ask you for a favor?" Asked Misa.

"Sure"

"Could you help me with detective stuff if it's not too much? Since we're gonna be working together, I was hoping that I could learn from you, and-" Misa clasped her hands in front of her as if pleading. "-I promise to be the best understudy ever!" She said. "I don't know a thing about being a good detective!"

"Oh you'll be alright." Said Halle, waving her hand dismissively. "I work with detectives all the time, and you'd be surprised at how many of them don't know what the hell they're doing. Just look at 'exhibit A' right outside" She said, referring to Gevanni. They both laughed in unison. "Also, you're pretty and you should have no problem charming the higher-ups into eating out of the palm of your hands. It happens all the time."

Misa giggled. "Alright then! We'll be unstoppable!" She declared.

-_The following day-_

Gevanni was exhausted and quite disgruntled. For the past week he'd done nothing but stake out Lidner's residence in hopes of catching a glimpse of the other blonde woman from the airport. So far it appeared that Lidner was living with someone, a pregnant mystery woman with short dark hair and glasses. His employer had him install cameras all around the outside of the house but even he had not managed to get a good enough look at the mystery woman's face through the cameras. Could Gevanni have been wrong? Could they just be wasting their time?

The agent looked at his watch.

'_O__nly 11am...this is gonna take a while' _He thought, yawning, as he leaned back in his seat, trying to find a comfortable position. Right as Gevanni was about to doze off, his patience was rewarded. The pregnant woman with the short black hair emerged from Lidner's apartment unit and seemed to be headed somewhere. He leaned forward in his seat.

"Are you watching this?" Said the agent into the transceiver.

"Yes." Answered L. "Follow her."

"Right."

Misa hummed a song to herself contently as she sauntered off to the convenience store. Today she barely put any effort into her disguise, opting to go with the bare minimum of sun glasses and a wig.

_'Whatever, I'm only going to the convenience store across the street. What's the worst that could happen?'_ She thought.

...

From Headquarters, L sat in quiet frustration. He crouched at his desk, skewering marshmallows and dipping them inside his coffee. One by one, he watched as the fluffy sweets absorbed the caffeinated liquid, all the while thinking about this mystery woman. In spite of his wide net of agents, he still hadn't found Misa. That was hard for him to accept. He watched some of the coffee drip off the marshmallow and frowned.

'..._Misa couldn't __have slipped through my net of agents undetected, so t__he only logical explanation is that I have found her, but she's just disguised...as the mystery woman. In fact, __I'd say there's a 90% possibility that the mysterious woman is Misa. She has to be...'_

He took the first marshmallow into his mouth and ate it listlessly. He looked around at the screens that surrounded him. Most were blank now, and though he did not show it, L was starting to get desperate. If things continued the way they had this past week, he would be forced to take drastic actions...

...

As Misa passed by, she noticed Gevanni in his car, spying on her. An impish smile formed on her face.

'_Time to make you sweat a little' _She thought as she waved at Gevanni flirtatiously, making the agent nervous.

'_Dammit, she's toying with_ me!' He was starting to get annoyed.

"Gevanni, is something the matter?" Asked L impatiently. "She's getting away."

"Yes, sorry. I'm on it." He responded, getting out of his car.

"Make sure to get close enough to get a picture of her face. Take whatever steps are necessary in order to obtain a good image, understood?" Said L.

Gevanni simply nodded.

Misa did not bother to look back at her stalker as she entered the store; she knew he'd be following. She strolled the isles and purposely stationed herself at the tampon and feminine products section, just to give Gevanni a hard time. The agent had no other choice but to stand there as well. He tried to look natural as he pretended to browse the wide selection of tampons, and Misa had to bite her lip just to keep from bursting out laughing. Other women in the store also noticed the man, comically out of place in the women's section, and began to giggle. Gevanni groaned and tried to occupy his mind with the nice, fat, paycheck that he was going to get for this.

'_Serves him right!__ Well, I think I'm done here, for now' _Thought Misa. The look on Gevanni's face was well worth the trip.

She turned on her heel and felt a "_pop" _followed by a sudden gush of about a gallon of water right down her dress. She gasped and covered her mouth, as she stared, horrified, at the water dripping down from between her legs, forming a puddle around her feet. She looked up and locked eyes with an equally shocked Gevanni.

"Her water just broke!" Said a lady as she pointed at Misa.

"Cleanup on isle Three." Announced a bored cashier in a monotone voice.

Alarmed customers began to surround her as more people gathered.

Misa was turning red like a tomato, slowly dying of embarrassment. She squeamishly stepped out of her prenatal monsoon, and once it seemed like she'd finished wetting herself, she ran. She ran as fast as she could out of that place, onto the street, and back to Halle's apartment.

"No, no, no...he's early!" Gasped Misa, reaching the front door to the apartment and banging on it furiously.

Back inside the store, Gevanni barely had time to react. He was still standing in the tampon section, open-mouthed.

"Gevanni, what is it? What's happening?" Asked L, bringing him out of his stupor.

"That...that woman...she almost popped out a baby right in the middle of a convenience store..."

L dropped the whole stick of marshmallows in the coffee. Suddenly, he felt like he was going to be sick.

"...what?" He asked, stupefied.

"I'm pretty sure she's having that baby..." Said Gevanni.

L's eyes were wide with a mixture of fear, shock, and something else, something desperate. There was a 90% chance that he was about to become a father.

"should I go after her?"

L was silent for a long time, his face ashen.

"hey...can you hear me?"

"...yes. Please follow her..." He said weakly. "Do whatever it takes to find out who she is and what exactly is going on."

...

Misa looked back, panicked, and saw Gevanni dodging traffic to cross the street to Halle's apartment complex. She called out to Halle to open the door as she continued to bang on it.

"Did you forget your keys again?" Said Halle as she unlocked the door.

Misa rushed right past her, throwing off her wig and glasses in the process. She ran into the guest bedroom that she'd been staying in, and dove under sheets, crying.

"What the hell?!" Said Halle, grimacing at the trail of liquid that Misa left behind. She went into Misa's room.

"...he's early...two weeks early..." Misa kept repeating from under the blanket.

"Wait...you mean..._it's_ happening?! Now?!" Asked Halle, alarmed.

"Yes! My water broke in the convenience store, it was so embarrassing!" Cried Misa.

"Well what the hell are you doing? You're having a kid, get out from under the blankets and stop crying, we're going to the hospital!"

"NO! Not the hospital! He'll find me!"

"What?! You can't have it here!"

"Yes! Here! AHHH!" Cried Misa as the first contraction hit her. She curled up on the bed and covered herself again with the blanket.

"You're crazy!"

There was a knock at the door.

...

Gevanni knew just the thing. He'd been saving this handy trick for when it came time to infiltrate Lidner's apartment. He searched the trunk of his car and retrieved a navy blue jacket with a false company logo on it. Along with that, he took out a handheld apparatus that looked like a small computer with loose wires attached. He readied himself and approached the apartment.

Halle opened the door and nearly yelled when she saw Gevanni standing there, looking like some sort of official.

"Hello miss. I'm a local home inspector for Carbon Monoxide levels, we've been getting alarming readings from your CO devices. Would you mind if I take a look?" He said, convincingly.

Halle looked at him skeptically. "Carbon Monoxide inspection? _Really?!_ Is that the best you could come up with?" She asked. Gevanni looked genuinely confused.

"I don't understand..."

"Look, I know you're spying on us! I'm busy at the moment and I don't have time for you, OK? Now go away!" She said, closing the door. However, before the lock could click shut, Gevanni stopped the door with his foot, pushing it back open.

"Miss, I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just here to-"

"Fucking hell, I don't have time for this!" Cursed Halle as she stepped forward, grabbing Gevanni by the jacket and planting a firm kiss on his lips. When Halle broke the kiss, Gevanni took a few steps back, dazed and stupefied.

Having obtained the desired effect, Halle shut the door on Gevanni's face. The agent took a few seconds to recover and when he did, he spoke into the transceiver.

"Sir...I don't think we're gonna win against these crazy women..."

...

Back in headquarters, L was a lump on the couch. Watari walked in with a tray of chocolates and other assorted sweets, which he deposited on L's desk. He turned around to find the young man on the sofa, in the dark.

"Hmm? What's the matter? Is something wrong, L?" Asked the old man. L silently nodded his head, while looking down at his feet.

"The mystery woman is delivering right as we speak" He said, sullen. Watari almost smiled proudly but then he stopped himself, not wanting to give Misa away.

"Oh" He said. "I suppose that's interesting. Why are you so upset?"

L shook his head. "I'm not upset."

"Oh, then what is it?"

L looked like he had a lot on his mind, but instead of coming out with it, he simply shook his head again.

"...don't pay any mind to me, Watari. I'm not thinking through things clearly." He said, getting up from the couch and walking back to the monitors. He sat down and fished the marshmallow skewer that was now swimming in his coffee mug, completely soaked. He threw it on the tray with the other sweets.

'_I'm being irrational. I should abstain from further action until I get confirmation from Gevanni that the woman really is Misa. In the meantime, I'll check all hospital records near that location, just in_ _case...u__nfortunately I don't know Misa's due date. That information would have been extremely useful in helping me determine if this woman is her or not.'_

He bit his thumb, suddenly feeling the sting of regret for not having opened the yellow envelope that Misa had given him.

...

Misa's cry of agony carried through the apartment. Halle rushed back to her, panicked, and completely unprepared for this. She had never delivered a baby, heck, she had never even _seen _a baby be delivered.

"Misa _please_! Let's go to a hospital, it'll be fine, I will be there, we can admit you under a false name. How will L ever know it's really you?!" Halle pleaded, trying to pull Misa out from under the covers. She removed the sheets and saw that Misa was doubled over in the fetal position, crying and sweating a cold sweat. She was also shivering as though she had a fever. Halle feared the worst.

"Get up, Misa! Clearly you're not OK and I'm not fit to bring this child into the world, so LET'S GO." She said firmly. Misa did not budge.

"No! I'm not going anywhere!" Said Misa stubbornly. "You ask how he'll know it's me...he'll _know_ because he's L...and hospitals keep records!" She said, in a strained tone. Halle's face was ashen as she stood there, helplessly watching her friend suffer.

"I don't know what to do..." Halle said in a quiet voice. Misa forced a smile in a feeble attempt to make Halle feel better.

"Get my cell phone and call Rita...she's my doctor. She can help" She said. Halle did as she was told and soon she had the doctor on speaker phone.

"Hi Misa! You're early. Congrats" Said Rita cheerfully over the phone.

"Thanks." Said Misa through gritted teeth. Rita talked Halle through the preliminaries, easing her a little bit. With Rita's guidance, the older blonde got down to business. She rolled up her sleeves, tied her hair back and put on gloves and an apron. Then she positioned herself in front of Misa, with a determined look on her face.

"OK, Misa, are you ready to do this?" She said seriously. Misa fed off of Halle's newfound courage and nodded her head.

There was a series of knocks on the door. Halle released a frustrated sigh.

"What now? WHO IS IT?!" She cried out toward the door, not moving from her spot.

"Miss!...I can't stress enough how important it is that I inspect your...um...CO device. Carbon Monoxide poisoning is not a joke"!

It was Gevanni. Halle cursed under her breath. '_What is wrong with that man?! Doesn't he get that he's not coming in?" _

"Are you ready to begin?" Asked Rita. Halle confirmed that she was. "Oh before we start. Do you know how to sew?"

Both Halle and Misa scrunched their faces in confusion. What kind of question was that at a time like this?

"Uh, no. Why do you ask?"

Rita sighed, worried. "Oh boy..."

"What?" Asked both Halle and Misa in unison. There was more knocking at the door but they ignored it.

"You're going to have to suture the tearing after the baby's out." Said Rita gravely. Misa squealed and Halle gasped, as they gave each other horrified looks. The doctor heard their reactions and tried to appease the soon-to-be-mother.

"Misa...vaginal tearing is fairly common for smaller women, try not to freak out"

"I'm going to die. I'm not gonna make it...I just know it." Said Misa, frantically, getting very pale. "My baby's gonna be an orphan...oh no..." she started wailing.

"Oh stop it!" Said Rita over the phone. "Halle, are you alright with this?"

While Misa panicked, Halle was despondent, shaking her head. "I can't do this. Not by myself...I need help" She said. She was trying to stay calm but Misa's incessant rambling was making her more nervous. Finally, Halle snapped her head back up and the look of determination returned.

"Alright...I think I know what to do..." She walked out of the room, through the living room, and opened the door. Sure enough, Gevanni was still there, looking surprised that Halle had opened the door for him. He was about to speak, when she cut him off.

"You want to come in? Fine! Come in!" She said, grabbing him by the jacket and pulling him inside.

"What the-?"

"Here, take these" Said Halle tossing him an extra apron and gloves. Gevanni eyed the items wearily.

'_Oh no...she's not really expecting me to...'_

Misa screamed in pain and Halle grabbed Gevanni by the arm and dragged him into Misa's room.

"AAHHH!" The man screamed upon seeing Misa sprawled there, legs spread, about to give birth. Misa screamed also. She didn't have her wig or her glasses to hide who she was. Gevanni took a good look at her for the first time, and though she looked ruffled and scared, there was no mistaking her identity.

_'That's the woman from the picture alright...Misa Amane'_ He swallowed nervously, dreading what was about to come next. He felt a quick swiping motion on the side of his head and when he turned, he saw Halle, with his transceiver in hand.

"This thing has to go. Now don't just stand there! Hold her hand or something!" She snapped, settling herself back down in front of Misa. Gevanni seemed unsure, but he did as he was told. Misa held the man's hand reluctantly.

"Uh...you're going to be fine." Said Gevanni uncomfortably while trying to avoid looking at anything past her face. Misa shot him a murderous glare.

"Tell your boss to piss off and that I HATE HIM! This is all his fault!" She yelled as another contraction hit her. The man looked nervously from Misa to Halle, wondering what she meant by that. Halle rolled her eyes at him.

"She doesn't mean that, you're not telling your boss any of this!" Yelled Halle, glaring at the other agent.

'_That remains to be seen'_ Thought Gevanni, glaring back.

As time progressed, Misa worsened and in spite of Halle's best efforts, it didn't look like the baby was coming out any time soon.

"I want-I want to go to the hospital. I do! Please let's go!" Cried Misa after about an hour of agony.

"Eh, I don't think so. You're too ahead into labor to be moved around now, I think you're just going to have to tough it out." Said Rita over the phone. "Sorry."

"OK can I have some pain killers?!"

"No. No drugs."

Misa looked as though she was about to pass out. Just then there was another knock on the door and Halle threw her bloodied hands up, frustrated.

"Who the hell is it now?!"

"Oh, is someone at the door?" Asked Rita. "Please open it. I called a friend of mine over to your place. She's a certified midwife, really good at what she does, and she owes me big time so she'll be taking care of everything."

Everyone in the room released a sigh of relief upon hearing the news. Halle threw a pleading look at Gevanni, who nodded and then moved to open the door. Moments later the midwife, a woman in her late 20's, entered the room. She stood at the door to Misa's room, chewing gum, seemingly bored as she sized up the situation. Misa was about to yell for the woman to do something when said woman finally moved and sat in Halle's place in front of her. The midwife frowned, becoming serious as she prepared herself, in the same manner that Halle had before.

"Stop squirming so much." The midwife ordered. Misa choked back a sob and a slew of curses. Was this woman for real?

"Easy for you to say lady...you're not the one trying to pass a watermelon through your - AHHH!" Yelled Misa. The midwife did not say anything. She did this for a living and she'd had all kinds of insults directed at her before. Without missing a beat, the midwife started to dish out orders to Halle and Gevanni.

"You, boil water" She said to Halle. "You, get some clean sheets and towels, and make it plenty" She said to Gevanni. "After that, I need you to clear the room and wait for my instructions."

"I like how she operates" Commented Halle as she took Gevanni by the arm, showing him where the towels and sheets were.

"Yeah" He said briskly. '_Damn this is not what I expected to be doing today...or ever'_

The two scattered around the house, gathering all the necessary things. Meanwhile, the midwife talked to Rita over the phone, reporting Misa's condition in medical terms that only they understood. The woman measured, probed, and continued to yell out orders for two hours straight. Misa was nearly at the end of her limits, on the verge of passing out from exhaustion...

...

Meanwhile in the Kira Investigation Headquarters, L sat in his seat, forcing himself to eat the sweets that Watari had brought him earlier. It had been more than three hours since Gevanni's last report and L was beyond worried now. This wait was maddening. He'd bitten his nails down to stumps and his body was rigid, jumping at any "beep" or other errant sound that came from the surrounding monitors.

"What is happening and why isn't Gevanni responding to me?" Asked L out loud to no one in particular. "Could it be that he's been compromised? He's been in the apartment for quite some time, he should have reported to me by now."

He furiously typed away at a keyboard, bringing up a terminal box with white letters on it. He typed some commands into it, and minutes later, a few of the monitors filled with hospital records. He painstakingly checked each maternity ward admission for any record that looked like it could be Misa.

'_What am I doing? This isn't going to work. Misa would go in there under a false name if she's even due to give birth today.' _Still, L performed a query on the records for her name. Not surprisingly, the search came up empty for 'Misa Amane,' 'Halle Lidner' or any variation of those names. That only meant three things. Either Misa was not due today and he was getting upset over nothing, or she was due today but was in the hospital under a false name, or...she was the mystery woman giving birth in the apartment, and not at a hospital. He threw one of the sweets back on the cart, getting irritated.

"Gevanni. I _need _to know what's going on, answer me."

Still nothing.

He tried the agent's cell phone, but it was off. L hugged his knees further into his chest, feeling more helpless than ever. All that was left for him to do was continue to scan the hospital records for anything that might stand out. He supposed he could try and look through the newborn infant records though that might also be a waste of time. He looked down at his feet, realizing that he knew nothing about his child, not even its gender. He was really kicking himself now for not having opened the envelope, or even asked Misa what she planned to name their child. At least that way, he could look for a name.

'_Dammit. I'm an idiot...' _He thought bitterly.

...

Gevanni and Halle sat, slumped on the couch, waiting. They were both tired and no longer cared that they were supposed to be on opposing sides. Halle was trying to suppress a yawn while the agent slowly swayed, trying not to fall over asleep. He accidentally brushed up against Halle's shoulder and he quickly snapped his head up to apologize, a faint blush on his cheeks. He quickly apologized and Halle gave him a small, tired, smile.

"It's OK" She said. "It must be exhausting standing watch all day and night."

"You have no idea." He sighed.

They sat quietly as the midwife emerged from the room, covered in sweat and blood. She said nothing to them as she removed her gloves, throwing them in the garbage. The woman also took off her apron, folding it up and throwing it in a bag. Halle and Gevanni shared the same alarmed expression but the midwife only went about her business as though nothing had happened.

"Well?!" Halle asked, forcefully. The midwife shrugged.

"Well...see for yourself" Said the woman, packing her things.

Halle walked into the room to find Misa on the bed smiling brighter than she'd ever seen, hugging a small bundle wrapped in white blankets. Misa looked adoringly at the baby; it had tufts of blonde hair and dark eyes, with facial features very similar to L's. Upon seeing her friend, Misa called out for her to come closer.

"You're both OK...how are you feeling?" Asked Halle, relieved.

"Yeah! I feel like a badass right now!" Misa whispered excitedly, trying not to wake her son. "Look!"

"Oh, but I didn't hear him cry..." Commented Halle in awe.

"He's sleeping...little Mihael..." Said Misa tenderly. Even Gevanni softened at the sight. The midwife came back into the room with some papers.

"You need to fill out the birth certificate." Said the woman, unmoved.

"That's right Misa, what are you going to do about a last name?" Asked Halle. Misa frowned, thinking. She very well couldn't give Mihael her last name, and much less L's. That would be a dead giveaway, even she knew that much. She looked down at her newborn son, saddened that he could not get a proper family name, but she had no choice.

"Hey, thank you for helping me with my son" She told the midwife. "What's your last name?"

The woman gave her a confused look, showing signs of emotion for the first time since she'd arrived to deliver the baby.

"It's Keehl, boring I know..."

"It's perfect! Thank you, I'll name him Mihael Keehl!" Announced Misa smiling from ear to ear. Her declaration was a bit too loud because the bundle in her arms shifted and seemed bothered by the new noises that surrounded him. Before long he opened his dark eyes and began to cry, rather loudly too. Misa cooed and shooed him, trying to appease little Mihael while the midwife filled out the paper work. While that was happening, Halle and Misa fussed over the newborn, neither of them noticing Gevanni quietly slipping away toward the living room.

* * *

**Writer's Note:** _Ok, I know I'm not the only one who thinks that if L and Misa had a kid, it would look just like Mello. So yea, haha, I went there. And there's more yet to come. Thanks for reading and till next time my awesome, lovely readers! _


	29. Loyalty

**Writer's Note: **_Hello everyone! Thank you all for the comments, I really appreciate them. I literally laughed with some of them. You guys are awesome and I'm happy that you write to me. Now let's see what else happens..._

* * *

Misa cradled her little one in her arms, swaying him gently, calming him down. Gradually, Mihael's cries turned into small grunts and whimpers as he squirmed rebelliously in his mother's arms. Misa smiled and lightly ran a finger over his small face, tracing his features. At the first chance he got, the baby latched onto her finger with his mouth, and clumsily suctioned it, as if trying to feed from it. Upon not being rewarded with milk, he released the finger and began to cry in protest. Misa and Halle couldn't help but smile.

"I think we'd better feed you..." Said Misa, moving to breastfeed the impatient baby.

Halle looked around the room, accounting for everyone. After one look-over, she snapped out of her fascination with the baby and remembered someone very important.

'_Gevanni! He's gone!' _She thought frantically. Halle saw that Misa was distracted with Mihael and took the opportunity to exit the room quietly.

Gevanni crossed the living room and took out his cell phone to call his employer. He would be happy to know that his suspicions about the mystery woman were correct. As he opened the front door of the apartment, he heard a '_click'_ behind him, and not just any click, but the unmistakable sound of a loaded gun ready to be fired. The agent stopped in his tracks, and turned around slowly, with the cell phone still in his hands.

"Where do you think you're going?" Asked Halle, pointing a gun right at his head. The man sighed.

"You're not going to kill me. Not with the midwife still here, not to mention neighbors..."

"I'm an FBI agent and I work for Interpol. I can do more than you think I can."

Gevanni showed no signs of being intimidated.

"Your scare tactic won't work on me. I'm an FBI agent also, and I'm pretty sure we're not allowed to go trigger-happy on civilians." He said, unperturbed. "Now if you'll excuse me..." He pressed a button on his cell phone and brought it up to his ear, ignoring Halle altogether.

'_Damn him!'_ Thought Halle. She lowered the gun slightly, pointing it at a different part of his body: his groin.

"Very well. You got me, I'm not going to kill you. But I can still shoot you where it'll hurt a lot." She said dangerously.

Gevanni scowled. Something about the way she'd said that told him that she was not kidding. As expected, Gevanni's phone started to ring, and as soon as he'd made a move to answer it, Halle fired. Gevanni gasped and jerked back, the shot grazing the inside of his thigh, and embedding itself in the wall right between his legs. His heart nearly jumped to his throat at the prospect of what she could have done just now.

"Are you insane!?" He shouted at her. Halle herself seemed shocked by her own actions, her hands no longer steady as she continued to point the gun at him.

"Why do you have to be so difficult?!" She yelled at him. "Don't you understand that I have a mission to carry? I have to keep Misa safe and hidden at whatever cost. And that's what I plan to do...now stop interfering!" She continued, shakily.

She could get into serious trouble for shooting a fellow FBI agent. Halle didn't want to harm him, but she had a job to do, just like him. Gevanni stood there, eyes wide, at a loss.

"Listen, I understand...I'm in the same position as you." He said, slowly approaching her with his arms extended. Halle watched as he stepped closer and gripped the gun tighter, steadying her aim.

"Stop! Don't think you can sweet talk me! That was just a warning shot but next time I won't be so sloppy!" She told him. "Now hand over that phone and sit down on the couch. Now! And if you make any sudden movements, I swear I'll blow a hole right through your crotch."

Gevanni swallowed nervously, and eyed his phone wearily. He wanted to answer it very badly. One press of a button would be all that would take but he didn't want to risk being unmanned by this madwoman. In the end, he decided to do as he was told, figuring that even his employer would cooperate if it were his penis on the line of fire. The phone continued to ring as Gevanni took a seat on the couch with both of his hands visible.

There was a gasp at the door as the midwife, followed by Misa and the baby appeared inside the living room. Halle's hands wavered slightly, betraying her nerves once again. Still, she did not take her eyes off the other agent as she tried to explain.

"It's OK! We're just having a little misunderstanding. He's my boyfriend and this is how we settle arguments" Said Halle for the benefit of the midwife. Misa giggled in response whereas Gevanni was not as amused.

"Yeah, like anyone would believe that." He said.

Halle shot him a glare. The midwife's gaze darted from one agent to the other before finally moving to get her things.

"Okay...whatever, I'm just going to pretend that none of this is happening." Said the midwife, ignoring Gevanni being held at gunpoint. "I'm going to gather my stuff and then I'm going to leave and not speak a word of this to anyone..."

Halle gave her a nod of approval.

"Sounds good. Thanks for everything." She said. Misa echoed that. Once the woman left, Halle got back to threatening Gevanni.

"So what are you going to do now? Keep me hostage indefinitely? If I don't answer the phone or call my employer, he'll start to suspect I'm in danger, you know." Said agent. The phone continued to ring on the coffee table and everyone looked at it apprehensively. Halle lowered her gun and sat down next to him.

"Ok. I'm sorry about shooting at you. I don't know what came over me...but please don't tell him you found Misa" She said sincerely.

"Yeah please don't!" Misa pleaded as well.

"And why would I ever help you after what you've done. _Both _of you"- he looked at Misa - "don't think I forgot about that little tampon shopping incident. That was embarrassing."

"Embarrassing?! I was the one who practically wet herself in front of everyone!" Said Misa adjusting the baby in her arms. "So don't tell _me_ about embarrassing!"

Mihael squirmed in Misa's arms as if reveling in all the excitement. Gevanni's cell phone continued to ring for another minute, and then it stopped. It didn't ring any more after that.

"See? He's probably already figured it out." Said Gevanni, gesturing toward the phone. "What you're doing is incredibly stupid."

"Misa, he has a point." Said Halle, defeated.

"Okay..." She thought for a moment. "...then call him back and tell him that the mystery woman was someone else. Tell him you made a mistake, or something." Misa suggested. Gevanni shook his head.

"Even if I did agree to help you, he won't believe that. He's very thorough and he'll still want your picture."

Misa scrunched her face in concentration. L was formidable when he was after something, and tricking him wasn't going to be easy. But she was still going to try.

"Do it anyway!" She said.

"Are you deaf? I just said-"

"Do it!" Said Halle, pointing the gun at him once again.

"Fine! Just put that thing down!" Gevanni picked up the phone and pressed a button. A moment later, the phone rang again and he heard L for the first time without the vocoder.

"Well?" Said the calm baritone voice. Gevanni took a second to get over hearing his employer's actual voice for the first time.

"Well...I...as you know, I followed the woman. Unfortunately I was enlisted to help with delivering her child. In the process I determined that she wasn't Misa Amane." Said Gevanni in an even tone.

L did not say anything and Gevanni was worried that maybe he hadn't been convincing. Misa looked at him anxiously, wishing that she could hear the conversation. She sat next to him and pressed her ear as close to the phone as possible.

"Hmm...that's a shame." L said at last.

'_It's him, it's really him!' _Thought Misa excitedly. She couldn't help but feel happy to hear his voice again, especially after having had their child, she wished she could just announce to him that they were parents at last. A smile slowly formed on her lips, and she moved in even closer to hear more from him. Misa was practically ear-to-ear with Gevanni now but she didn't care. She really did miss L terribly, and deep down, she knew that he was worried about her too. After all, why would he be doing all this to find her if he didn't care?

Gevanni, on the other hand, didn't know what to think of the situation. His employer didn't sound upset, surprised, or anything except mildly disappointed. It was as if the past week of staking out had been nothing to him, and that the end result was just as he'd expected, a boring dead end. Maybe he should have felt relieved that his employer was taking this presumed false lead lightly, but something told him that there was much more going on beneath the surface.

"So what now?" Asked Gevanni cautiously.

"Now? I have a different task for you." Said L. "As you may have guessed, you were not the only agent I enlisted to look for Misa Amane. There were several others, like you, who have been reporting to me for some time with information on her whereabouts, or better yet, the lack thereof. I have reason to believe that one of the agents assigned to this task has recently given me false information."

L purposely lingered over that last part. Gevanni's heartbeat quickened, knowing that this could be his employer's way of telling him that he didn't believe him. This could be a tactic to get him to fess up to his lie. Gevanni glanced over at Halle. She had lowered her gun to lay flat on her lap. If he wanted to, he could probably grab the gun from her and run for it. He was considering just that when Misa's baby made a loud, unintelligible babbling noise. Misa gasped and shusshed him, realizing too late that she was close enough to the phone to be heard. L stopped abruptly mid-sentence.

Gevanni gaped at Misa, who was just frozen, with her hand covering her mouth.

At headquarters, L stopped breathing for a moment. He cradled the phone in his hands as though it were something precious instead of holding it like he usually did, trying to listen for whatever sound he'd just heard. He staid silent for a moment, listening. Nothing. He exhaled and then resumed his instructions as if nothing had happened.

"...as I was saying, I will assign you an agent to follow over the course of this week. Please maintain a low profile. That's all for now." Said L. Gevanni visibly relaxed.

"Okay. I'll get started on that right away." Said the agent.

"Please do. Oh, and I'll be needing a picture of the mystery woman. I'm sure you managed to obtain one during the course of your encounter with her, so please send that to me right away." And with that the line went dead. Everyone remained silent as Gevanni placed the phone back on the table.

"Did he hear me?" Asked Misa, worried. Gevanni shook his head.

"No, I don't think so..." He said. "But, regardless, he wants your picture, just like I knew he would."

"Damn" Said Halle. Misa's face lit up like it usually did whenever she got an idea.

"It's OK! That disguise with the black wig and glasses was inspired by my old manager. Whenever I wear it, I look just like her, so if I can find one of my old pictures of her, you can take a picture of her face with your phone and send it to him." She said, gently adjusting Mihael in her arms. "It's not fool-proof, but it's better than nothing."

"This is ridiculous...why should I even go along with this?" He said. Halle brandished the gun in her hand, causing him to flinch defensively. "Nevermind, stupid question."

"True...but I have to try..." Said Misa, hugging Mihael close.

Halle looked at Misa, worriedly. She wished she could secure Gevanni's loyalty somehow, but she didn't have any leverage other than her gun, and that was only temporary. Eventually Gevanni would have to leave the apartment, and once that happened, nothing would stop him from contacting L and telling him the truth. Halle sighed and put her gun aside. Gevanni regarded her curiously.

"When you leave here, will you tell your employer that Misa is here?"Asked Halle.

"Probably." He said truthfully.

"Please hold off on that."

"Why should I?"

"Because you don't know Misa's story. I think there's a lot you don't know about the circumstances surrounding your mission, and if you do this, you'll piss off a lot of people at Interpol." She told him sincerely. "Do you even know who your contractor is?"

"Does that matter?" He asked. Having an anonymous contractor was very common in his line of work, and normally agents like him took jobs with only the necessary information to get the job done. However, Halle had peeked his curiosity. He looked into her eyes, searching for any sign of deceit. He saw nothing but sincerity and worry written on her face, and he couldn't help but feel some sympathy for her. She really wasn't a bad person, she was just trying to do her job and protect someone she cared about. He could understand that.

"Fine...explain yourselves..."

...

Days later, L sat at his desk, typing away on his keyboard when Watari came into the room carrying something for him. He placed the parcel on the desk next to the detective.

"Here are the trackers you asked for. Are you planning to use them for something? They're not ready yet."

"Thank you, and trust me, they will not go to waste. I'm actually taking on a new case."

"Oh is that so?"

"Yes, it's a cold case, unresolved for 50 years..." He continued to type, never taking his eyes off the screen. "...the only leads to date is a deathbed confession and an old train ticket. Other than that, most of the witnesses are dead or too senile to remember anything."

Watari regarded him carefully. L had solved cases with little to no evidence before, but this was his first time taking on a cold case. Well, if it helped him get his mind off of Misa for a while, then so be it. Still, it didn't make sense to him why L wanted the tracking devices that he had developed a few years back. They were smaller than a grain of sand, undetectable, and most importantly, they were edible. They could embed themselves in a target's digestive system for weeks at a time, probably longer. Watari had worked hard on these, but for whatever reason, they just weren't reliable and often fell apart when they came into contact with stomach acids. But now L planned to use them. Watari turned to leave but the detective called to him. The old man looked at him expectantly.

"Is there something else you need?" He asked. L held up a piece of paper in between his thumb and forefinger.

"Can you please order me one of these?" L asked. Watari took the paper and read it, his brow furrowing.

'_A hazmat suit?' _He thought, puzzled, but then he just nodded and said that he could.

...

"Oh man, this week was a killer..." groaned Misa, throwing herself onto the couch. Mihael babbled from his cradle swing next to the couch as he looked at his exhausted mother. Misa perked up at seeing his carefree face and clumsy hand motions. She scooted over to the edge of the couch and reached her hand out to caress his face.

"My Mello, you're so precious and beautiful..." She cooed, leaning over to kiss him on the head.

The baby waved his arms around contently. Misa put her head down on the arm of the couch, and just looked at him adoringly, thinking of how he was worth everything.

Misa had just completed her first week as a new detective for the Investigation Bureau under the ICPO. Overall, detective work was really hard. Misa never imagined that it would drain so much out of her, and to think that at some point she thought modeling was hard work! It was cake compared to the 12-hour work days she had to pull off this past week just to get by. It was painfully obvious that she really wasn't cut out to be a good detective. She wasn't bright or experienced enough to figure things out quickly, and she constantly needed to ask for help. Not only that, but she found out the hard way that, ironically, she actually hated death. Especially the ones she was assigned to work with at the investigation bureau. She hated the times she had to go to crime scenes in person the most. Misa was squeamish by nature, and it didn't help that she had to smell death, see death, step in it, and sometimes even touch it. It was not pretty. It made her want to run back to modeling where everything was beautiful and perfect, at least in pictures.

"Thanks for taking care of him while I was out, Halle!" Misa called out from the living room.

"No problem, it was a pleasure. He's a good baby, really." Said Halle. She stepped out of her room and quickly moved toward the door, hoping to not attract the younger woman's attention. Misa sat up when she heard the sound of heels clacking on the floor. She caught Halle attempting to sneak out the front door and saw that she was all dressed up in a classy wine-red dress and black heels. She was wearing nice silver earrings, red lipstick, makeup, and even her hair was styled. Misa's jaw dropped.

"You look _awesome_. You're going on a date aren't you?!"

"What? It's not a date..." Said the older blonde with a slight blush.

"You can't fool me! I always know when a girl is going out on a date!" Said Misa. "So who's the lucky guy, huh?"

"Uh..."

"Wait. Don't tell me!" Misa jumped up from the couch and ran to the window. Sure enough there was Gevanni's black car parked outside, running. "I knew it! I knew it! You're going on a date with Stephen Gevanni! Aaahhh!" She squealed excitedly. Little Mihael squirmed in his cradle and pitched in his own squeal, as if trying to match his mother's.

Halle's face turned pink. "Well...I saw him earlier this week and I invited him to lunch, you know to make up for having shot at him. And we had a really nice time, we exchanged numbers, and next thing I knew, he asked me to dinner. But he never said it was a date, so it's probably not."

Misa shot her a skeptical look. "Sure, the hell it isn't! It definitely is, Halle! Wow, this is so romantic, I'm going to be third wheel..." She said wistfully. Halle couldn't help but smile and shake her head at Misa. The girl really was something.

"I should get going now. You're gonna be alright tonight? You seem tired."

"Yeah, I'm good. I'll just sit here and tell Mihael all about his father. You behave yourself, and don't think I won't ask you for the juicy details later!" Said Misa, curling up on the couch. Halle chuckled and said her goodbyes as she left the apartment.

...

Back at the Kira Investigation HQ in Japan, Watari walked into the main investigation room to find it empty. All the monitors were off and L was nowhere to be found. He'd searched everywhere, even Misa's old apartment, and he was starting to get worried. For the past week, his adoptive son had been very secretive, working tirelessly on something on his own. He'd assumed it involved the cold case he'd recently taken on, but now he wasn't so sure.

"Hmm..." He frowned and called L on his cell phone. The worry lines on his face thickened when the phone operator asked him to input a country dialing code.

'_He's left the country! Without me!' _He thought alarmed. This was unprecedented, but immediately, Watari knew which country code he would type in first: the American country code. As he feared, the call went through.

"Yes, Watari?" Answered L.

"L, why are you in America? What's going on and why did you not ask me to accompany you?" He asked, though he probably already knew the answer.

L sounded like he was busy. There was some ruffling in the background and something that sounded like sirens from far away.

"Where are you and what are you doing?" Insisted the old man.

"I'm in the U.S. is there a problem? I didn't need any assistance so I came on my own. Besides, I need you to remain at Headquarters because there is a very strong chance that the ICPO will go there looking for me in a few hours. Feel free to tell them I'm on the run."

"What? L stop this!"

"I have to go. I will contact you later tonight, and we'll set a rendezvous point."

"L!"

But he had already hung up.

From his hotel room, L prepared for his next performance. He connected a device to his laptop in preparation for his little "prank call." He cleared his throat and dialed a number through his laptop. He immediately got a response.

"United States Department of Hazardous Materials Safety and Research Administration" Said a poised female voice.

"Yes, this is Director Deputy Matthews, ID code 233, I need you to send a team out to the address that I just submitted to the call system. And be thorough; Quarantine anyone on the premises."

The operator seemed a little unsure at first but then she verified the number and confirmed that it was chief superintendent Matthews.

"Uh, yes sir, Chief! Right away! I believe we received a call earlier today for this address...a possible deadly virus infection?"

"Yes. A level four hemorrhagic fever virus, extremely dangerous." He said gravely. "Dispatch a team right away. Thank you."

"Yes, right away!"

...

In Halle's apartment, Misa was fast asleep. She dozed off while telling Mihael a romanticized version of how she and L met. Her arm was outstretched to lie protectively over the baby's stomach as he lay in his cradle swing.

The satellite phone that Watari had given her began to vibrate loudly from where it lay on the coffee table in front of the couch. The lights on the phone turned on as well, but Misa was out cold, and exhausted.

The sound and lights caught Mihael's attention. He squirmed and stretched his arms out toward the shiny 'toy.' Unable to reach it, he frowned and began to whimper in protest, babbling in his baby sounds.

"Not now Mello...you already ate..." Misa mumbled in her sleep, too tired to notice the phone and the urgent message it held.

...

In a classy uptown restaurant, Halle and Gevanni were finishing their dinner. The place was an exquisite locale that only opened its doors from 6-11pm four days a week, and was known for its ambiance, high-quality food, and high demand for reservations. The lighting was delicate and soft, the tables were made out of a dark mahogany wood, and the decor was exotic but modern and neat. A few of the walls were covered in floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the city in all its nighttime splendor.

"Wow, I still can't get over this place. It's beautiful and this food is so good! How did you even manage to get a reservation?" Halle asked. Gevanni smiled at her and she blushed. He really did have a great smile.

He leaned in as if to tell her a secret. "I know the owner. He's a close friend of mine." He said.

"Oooh I see. Sneaky."

"But not sneaky enough to fool you."

She smiled, remembering him in that stupid CO inspector's outfit.

"True. I can fool you well enough though" She chuckled.

"Oh, the airport incident. That was quite an outfit, you should dress like that more often." He said jokingly, causing her to roll her eyes at him.

They laughed and conversed easily the remainder of the dinner. Gevanni had to admit that Halle was quite a beautiful, intelligent, strong woman, and that in spite of what had happened between them, he enjoyed her company. On the way to the car, their hands brushed and Gevanni wished he had seized the opportunity to hold her hand. Neither said anything as they waited for the valet parking. Once inside the car, he drove through the streets while frequently glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, wondering if she was interested in him the same way that he was in her. He figured that his intentions were probably clear, but with women one could never be sure, and Halle never once said how she felt about him.

'_Ah, screw it. I'll just go for it.' _He took a sharp turn into a parking lot to a hotel and Halle looked at him curiously. He parked the car and turned to her.

"Listen. I just want to be clear with you...I really like you...in a romantic sense." He blurted out, his face slightly flushed.

To him, it was better to get this off his chest quickly. Halle just looked at him, a smile tugging at her lips as she watched him shift uncomfortably in his seat, waiting for her answer. Her hesitation unnerved him. Just when Gevanni was about to berate himself for being so forward on a first date, he felt Halle's hand over his. He turned to face her and the moment he did, she threw herself in his arms and brought their lips together. He was surprised at first, in a good way, and then he encircled her in his arms, giving in to the kiss. The next half an hour they made out in that parking lot, only driving home because it had started to thunder and pour outside.

As they approached Halle's apartment complex, the rain died down, but something else was very wrong. There was caution tape, police carts, and a few white vans gathered around Halle's apartment.

"What the hell?" Said Halle.

Gevanni quickly parked his car in front of the caution tape and the two got out of the car.

"What's going on here?!" She asked one of the officers standing by.

"We're investigating a call about a potential hazardous virus infection in this location, we're under strict orders to evacuate and quarantine anyone found on the premises."

"What?! What virus?! This has to be a joke!" Then she stopped abruptly and looked at Gevanni. "Oh no, Misa's in there, they might have taken her and Mihael. I'm going inside." Halle stepped beyond the tape before the cop could stop her. Gevanni followed right after.

"Halle, wait!" He called but it was no use. She pushed past the many bodies in white hazmat suits and went inside her home.

"Miss, we're finishing up a decontamination here. I'm sorry but you'll have to wait a few more minutes to come inside." Said one of the suited men through his air mask.

"Like hell I'll wait, this is my house and I'm staying here! Who the hell called you guys about a damn virus anyway?!" She said, walking into her living room, which was being hosed down with some clear fume. She coughed a little but other than that, whatever they were spraying seemed to have no effect on her. She walked around, inspecting the damage. Her whole place had been ransacked for this stupid virus. And where were Misa and Mihael?

"Hey, you, did anyone get taken away for quarantine?" She asked one of the masked and suited men.

"Uh, no, miss. The house was empty when we arrived. You really shouldn't be here we're still decontaminati-"

"Yeah, I got the memo. Thanks." She said dismissively, walking away. She was really worried now, wondering where Misa and the baby went. Luckily, all the guys in hazmat suits seemed to be packing up and moving out. A couple walked out of her bedroom, which she noticed was slightly upturned. When she went to Misa's room, she found yet another guy in a hazmat suit crouched down on the floor. This one, however, seemed different from the others. He wasn't hosing anything down, and he was crouched on the floor stretching something out in between his hands, inspecting it. It looked to be a strand of hair, which he stuck in a clear bag before moving on to examine some other things.

"And what are you doing? Some sort of forensic analysis?!" She asked the man. She could tell he was studying the place, like a detective at a crime scene, and not a hazmat worker. The man looked at her but didn't say anything as he concluded his little 'search' and stood to his feet. Halle couldn't help but notice his slouched posture and his languid movements. Gevanni finally caught up to Halle then and took her hand, trying to comfort her.

"Hey, everything looks clear, they didn't find anything. I think they want to talk to you up front." He said, hugging her.

It was then that Gevanni noticed the other man standing in the room, looking at the two of them.

"...right" said Halle, looking back at the strange hazmat worker once more before leaving him. Minutes later, she was given the OK to stay in her house.

"Let's move out boys!" Announced the team leader. One by one, the hazmat workers filed out of her house. One approached her on his way out. His rounded shoulders and easy movements gave him away as the hazmat worker that had been in Misa's room.

"Here miss, for your troubles." Said the hazmat worker as he deposited something in her hand. It looked like...a lollipop. She scrunched her face in confusion as she looked at it, trying to decipher the meaning of this gesture.

"Wha-" She began to ask, but when she looked up, the man had already blended into the group of hazmat workers. Halle and Gevanni looked at each other with questioning frowns as the team of policemen and hazmat personnel boarded their vehicles and drove away.

* * *

**Writer's Note:** _Hey readers, just wanted to let you guys know that the next chapter is well under way and it'll probably be out either tomorrow or the day after. I was originally planning to release them both together cause they flow nicely into each other but I really wanna get rid of this one so I published it. As always, if anything seems confusing or weird, please let me know and I'll clarify. Another reason why I really maybe should have waited to release the next chapter is because it explains some of the stuff in this chapter. Oh well, till next time!_


	30. Ultimatum

**Writer's Note: **_Hey there! I wonder what you guys think of this...you know what's a great idea? Review at the end and tell me what you guys think of this! Alright, on to the story...Oh wait! I just have some comments for a couple of reviewers. _

_**wrathofnerds:** That restaurant kind-of, sort-of, exists (loosely?). My friend took a girl out to dinner this past weekend to a fancy restaurant in nyc that looks like that and that's where I got the inspiration from. I don't know how good their food is though haha._

**_Wounded Shell of Myself: _**_I totally get where you're coming from! Yes, but hopefully you love him again after this chapter._

_...and to all my reviewers in general, I love you guys! Ok I'm done..._

* * *

"Okay...that was interesting." Said Gevanni as he watched the procession of cars fade into the distance. Halle didn't say anything as she examined her phone.

"I know where Misa is" She said, and he gave her a questioning look. She held up the phone to him, showing him a text message from Misa containing the address to a nearby hotel. He nodded and gestured toward his car, offering to take her there. She accepted and they left immediately. When Halle arrived at the suite, she opened the door and almost stepped on the black wig and overcoat that Misa always used to disguise herself. They lay ,discarded, on the floor by the door, and they were soaked, probably because she had run out of the apartment in the rain.

"Misa?" Halle called out.

"I'm here" a voice responded from further into the hotel suite. The two newcomers followed the voice and arrived at the bedroom part of the suite. There was Misa, laying face down on the bed next to Mihael, who looked content as usual, oblivious to anything that was happening. Misa, however, didn't look so good. Her face was damp and slightly red as if she'd been crying.

"Are you OK? I thought those hazmat people took you. I don't know what the hell happened or why they were in my apartment but thank goodness you got out of there in time." Said Halle, sitting on the bed.

"Yeah. He was there." Said Misa miserably.

"He? You mean...detective L?" Halle asked.

"Yup. The very same."

"Are you serious?!" She looked at Gevanni with wide eyes. "So I very possibly met detective L, the top detective in the world, the legend, and I didn't even realize it?! How unfair!" She said, indignantly.

"...here we go with detective L again..." Sighed Gevanni, rolling his eyes. Misa snorted at Halle's outburst. She always found it funny how Halle was so business-like, yet when it came to L she would get star-struck and turn into an absolute fan girl. Misa was convinced that if Halle could have L's autograph, she'd frame it on her wall and admire it every single day. He was like her personal hero or something.

"I'm sorry. I'm being tactless. It's just...I really want to meet him someday..." She said pitifully, earning yet another eye-roll from Gevanni. "Anyway, so this whole thing was detective L's doing?"

"Yep" Said Misa. "I literally woke up and saw the message from Watari 10 minutes before he raided the place. Apparently he was planning to have me sent to a fake quarantine location where he would meet me..."

"That's actually pretty clever." Gevanni pointed out. "Even the ICPO wouldn't have the authority over someone quarantined due to public health issues. When you think about it, it's a pretty smart way to kidnap someone because if a person goes missing and they're 'quarantined' people stop asking questions and no one investigates."

"And that's why he's a legend..." Chimed Halle wistfully.

"Alright, I'll give him brownie points for creativity, but he still failed." Said Gevanni, crossing his arms.

"Wait a minute, this means he knows that Misa is the dark-haired woman. Did you tell him?!" Asked Halle, glaring at Gevanni. He immediately got on the defensive.

"Of course not. It's like I said to you before, he assigned me to a new mission. I'm following some other agent now." He explained. Halle continued to stare him down, but eventually she relaxed again.

"Alright, I believe you." She looked at Misa, noticing that she was curled up, caressing Mihael's face with a sad stare.

"Are you OK?" Halle asked her.

"Yeah..." Misa responded feebly.

Halle wasn't the least bit convinced but if Misa didn't want to tell her what was bothering her, then she would respect that.

The young mother frowned as she stroked her son's hair. How she wished L could see him. When sheread Watari's message warning her that L was on his way, her heart leaped. Part of her wanted to stay. Ever since she gave birth, all she wanted was to see that stupid panda, to introduce his son to him, and see the look of a proud father on his face. But that was just a silly hope that she had. From the moment that he found out he was going to be a father, L refused to care for their son. For all she knew, he would try to take her and make her leave Mihael behind and she could never risk that. Yet in spite of that, her heart still clenched at the thought of not being able to see him, especially when he was so close.

'_I still love him, and probably always will' _She thought miserably. She curled up further into herself, sniffling.

Halle looked at her sadly and then she got an idea.

"Oh, hey, maybe this will cheer you up. Look!" She said, taking out the large lollipop that the hazmat guy gave to her. She held it out, offering it to Misa.

"What's that?" She asked, sitting up on the bed.

"One of the hazmat men gave it to me on his way out. He was kind of weird, not like the others..."

"What?" Misa's eyes were shining with the realization that this might be a gift from L. She took the lollipop and unwrapped it. It wasn't a lollipop at all. At the end of the stem was a large, magnificent strawberry covered in chocolate. She nearly cried out of joy. It was a present from him!

"Oh wow! He sent me this, it's definitely for me, he knows how much I crave these!" Said Misa. Halle's face was priceless.

"WHAT? So I did meet him! I met him and I talked to him and he talked back!" She proclaimed. "I think my life is complete. I can die happy now." She said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Oh give me a break will ya?" Said Gevanni, crossing his arms.

Misa ate the strawberry heartily, enjoying its sweetness and the sentiment behind it. Just knowing that it came from her love was enough to make it the best chocolate-covered strawberry she'd ever had.

"Yum...your dad has great taste in strawberries, Mello" She said to the baby lying on the bed. "This was a good one!" She said cheerfully. Halle and Gevanni looked at her, amused by how much that one strawberry cheered her up.

"Well, I'm glad that helped. Should we get going?" Asked Halle. Misa looked at her and held a finger up.

"Wait! I have to call Watari first. He said that I should call him as soon as you arrived, but I forgot, so I'll do it now." Said Misa.

Halle and Gevanni waited as she dialed the number. Misa talked with the old man for a few minutes, assuring him that everything was fine, and that she and the baby got out alright. She thanked him and then passed the phone over to Halle, who seemed surprised that he wanted to speak to her.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hello. So I understand that you may have met with L. Did he give you anything?"

"Yeah, actually."

"...and was it edible?"

"Uh, yes. He gave me a strawberry covered in chocolate. What's up?"

"And did you eat it?"

"No, but Misa did. Was that bad?"

The old man sighed. "Please put me on speakerphone, there is something you should all hear."

Halle did as he asked.

"Please listen very carefully. As Misa knows, I'm an inventor and I'm responsible for coming up with a lot of the technology that L uses to solve his cases. One of the projects that I had been working on for a while was a new type of tracker that could be ingested by a human and once it's in their digestive system, it would interact with their stomach fluids and activate, giving off a signal that broadcasts that person's location."

Misa swallowed nervously. She didn't like where this was going.

"...Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stabilize it to the point where it wouldn't completely disintegrate inside a person's stomach. However...a few weeks ago, L asked me for the prototypes, along with all their documentation. It seemed he planned to dabble into biotechnology to complete them, which he did. I thought he planned to use them in a new case he'd taken but I was mistaken. I'm certain he put one of the trackers inside that strawberry. It's completely harmless to your health, but once it activates, it will be nearly impossible to remove without surgery. Misa, I suggest that you regurgitate that right away." Said the old man gravely.

Misa paled and held her neck, looking as though she'd just ingested poison.

"I knew it was too good to be true! He tricked me! L never does anything romantic, he fooled me and I fell right into that one, I'm such an idiot, I should have thrown out that stupid strawberry!" She rambled. Her ruckus startled Mihael, causing him to start to whimper and squirm like he often did before launching into a crying session. Realizing what she'd done, Misa immediately hovered over him and picked him up. She looked at him in the eyes.

"Your dad is evil, don't ever be like him." She pouted and kissed him. The baby made unintelligible sounds at his mother and reached out for her face. Misa hugged him.

"Alright, Stephen, watch him" Said Halle, taking Mihael from Misa and depositing him back on the bed. "You can handle that, right?"

Gevanni looked at the baby uncertainly and then nodded his head. This most certainly wasn't how he envisioned the rest of his night.

"And you need to go get rid of that thing before it settles into your stomach" Halle told Misa. The young mother grimaced in distaste. "Go, and I'll figure out what to do from here." The older woman said seriously. The door to the bathroom clicked shut behind Misa and Halle walked toward the balcony, taking out her phone.

"So while I'm on baby watch, and she's in the bathroom puking her guts out, what will you be doing?" Asked Gevanni. Halle sighed and turned to him.

"I'm calling the higher-ups to ask for backup, which by the way, I've gotten none for this whole mission. They literally shoved this girl into my life and said "Here! Keep her safe, and don't let her out of your sight!" I love her like a sister, she's great, but they never told me that she was being followed by L and while I'm flattered they would entrust me with this mission, there's no way I can win against L." She said honestly. "The ICPO _will_ hear about this, L or no L, this has gone far enough and it needs to end."

...

L looked out the window of his hotel room. He felt light and almost giddy with excitement and relief. He'd found Misa at last, he was 100% sure of it. Even though she somehow managed to leave the apartment before he had the chance to see her, the hair he found on the bedroom floor proved it. As usual, he'd planned ahead and brought the bugged strawberry, her favorite, just in case she hid or escaped. Now it was only a matter of time before his tracker finished the rest of the work.

He walked over to his laptop and refreshed it, waiting for the tracker signal that would reveal where Misa ran off to. She and their baby. Judging by the infant toys and clothes he saw in the apartment, there was no doubt that he had a son. L crouched down and settled himself in front of the laptop, biting his thumb, waiting. It felt weird knowing that he had a child, but along with the weirdness, he felt...happy, and eager to meet him, and jittery with nerves. He didn't know what to do once he met his son, or even what to expect.

'_Maybe he'll cry when he sees me, but maybe he won't...I wonder if children that young can recognize their parents...' _He thought, his eyes still glued to the computer screen. His phone rang, startling him. It was Watari.

"L"

"Watari, I found her!" He announced. "I've almost won. It should only be a few more minutes and I'll know exactly where she is. Both of them."

"You did?" He asked, in a strained voice.

"Yes, I did. I raided Halle Bullook's apartment with a Hazmat Control team. Misa left just before I arrived, but regardless, I found some hair samples inside the apartment and when I analyzed them and ran them through, I found no match."

"No match?" Said Watari, confused.

"Yes, and that is _very_ good because the ICPO took down all of Misa's records from all databases and made them highly classified. So no match means that it doesn't belong to anyone, except someone so highly protected by the ICPO that their records are off-the-record, if that makes any sense...and that Halle Bullook has been housing this person, which naturally, could only be Misa" He said all in one breath. Watari could tell that L was excited to have found her. It pained him to have to burst him out of his high.

"And..." L continued "I have a son." He said, smiling.

He clicked the refresh button on the laptop. Still no signal.

"Everything's perfect, now all I need is for this signal to come on and then I'll go over there, apologize to Misa wholeheartedly, and we can all move on with our lives." He finished.

"I see...congratulations." Said the old man.

"Thank you."

"But we have a problem, L."

"Would that problem be the ICPO? I anticipated that they might get involved so I made preparations."

"Did you now?" Said a completely different voice over the phone, chilling L.

"...Watari?"

"No, try again." Said the voice, and it sounded displeased. L knew that voice.

"Ferraro." He said.

"Yes, I've been listening in on your little conversation and I'm sure I don't need to tell you that I'm not impressed. You messed with one of my agents, had her followed and her house raided. You were right to expect me to get involved. This will not be overlooked."

L said nothing.

"You ignored my warnings and now I'm forced to take action against you." Said Ferraro. "Right now, we have Watari in custody and we raided a few of your hideouts, the Kira Taskforce Headquarters included. Let's just say that when you go back there, you won't find much left."

"Watari, is this true?"

"It is. I was there when they burnt down the Taskforce Headquarters." Said Watari seriously.

L was unconcerned about the headquarters building, it was just a place after all. He had so much more than that now. He was going to get Misa back and their son, and then Watari. It didn't matter how many of his buildings Ferraro burnt to the ground.

"...that's not all, though." Said Ferraro with a hint of malice. L listened carefully. Watari spoke next.

"They know about Wammy's House" Said the old man mournfully. "They're threatening to burn down Wammy's House."

"...what?" Asked L, taken aback. "Ferraro. Killing innocent children is unbecoming of an ICPO president. I find it hard to believe that the other representatives are willing to taint their conscience with the blood of orphans." He said sternly.

"Oh, they actually encourage it. You see, detective L, the ICPO has never trusted you. What's more, you became an enemy of Interpol the moment you acted against us and what better way to eliminate an enemy than to destroy his legacy? An orphanage full of successors to L...sounds like a place full of future traitors and enemies of the ICPO to me. Best to put an end to that gibberish quickly."

L was silent for a moment, thinking. Unfortunately there wasn't any way for him to get the orphans out fast enough without attracting attention. Surely Wammy's House was under heavy surveillance by now and any movement on his part to try to relocate anyone might not end well. In fact, any way he cut it, at least some children casualties were inevitable.

"Alright, so what are your terms? You wouldn't have told me all of that unless you planned to negotiate" Said L, though he could already guess what Ferraro wanted.

"Leave my agent and my detective alone." He said firmly.

"Detective...Misa? You can't be serious." L said, frowning. Was that what this was all about, Misa offered herself as a detective for the ICPO? With that premise in mind, it made sense why the ICPO was being so protective of her, but from a detective's standpoint it made no sense at all. Were they trying to get her killed? Misa was thrifty sometimes, and she had heart, but she was no detective. She was also a well-known person, easily recognized in public, and most importantly, hundreds of people know that she has ties to L. Anyone trying to find him would try to use her, so she's practically a sitting duck. What were the representatives even thinking?

'_Idiots...all of them.' _Thought L bitterly.

"As always, very shrewd of you to have caught that. I always had my doubts about your interest in Misa Amane being strictly professional, but now I think it's pretty clear why you're after her so persistently. And I will tell you right now, forget her. Forget the kid. They're not yours anymore. And contrary to what you may think, I actually like you, detective L, I really do. So I want to offer you an alternative to the child slaughter and world wide manhunt for your head."

L was numb, his mind racing to find a loophole, a silver lining that he could grasp and exploit to his benefit.

"I'm listening" Said the detective, gripping his knees tightly.

"I've arranged for a private jet to depart for England later tonight. You _will_ be on it, and only after I receive confirmation of your arrival in Winchester, will I release Watari and lift all threats on the orphanage. Trust me when I say that failure to comply isn't in your best interest or that of Watari and those orphans. So what will it be?"

L's heart dropped and he was at a loss for words. He stared blankly at the screen in front of him, unable to think of a way around this ultimatum. He absentmindedly clicked on the refresh button on his computer and a small blue dot appeared on a map. The signal. L did not react to it at first.

"I...I need half an hour to think. Is it alright if I give you my answer in half an hour?" Asked L. Ferraro thought about it for a moment but then he agreed.

The dial tone went dead and L's hand dropped with the phone still in it. He curled further into himself, looking at the blue dot on the screen helplessly. He wanted to go to his family but that may spell death for Watari and the orphans. He sat there staring at the computer screen, feeling torn. Moments later, the dot started moving, and fast. His eyes followed the dot as it darted across the city through uncharted routes not marked explicitly on the map. He frowned and brought his thumb to his lips as he looked on.

'_How is she doing that? The only way that she could go that fast and bypass all roads is if she's somehow been shot through a tunnel at high-speeds, which doesn't make any sense.' _He thought, baffled. Then as quickly as the dot had begun to move, it stopped at a location just on the outskirt of town. L made up his mind and decided to go. If he was quick he could meet with Misa, explain everything to her, apologize, and promise to return to her as soon as he secured Watari and the orphans. That would leave him with enough time to call Ferraro back.

L got on his feet and called for a taxi.

...

Meanwhile, at the hotel, Misa emerged from the bathroom looking ruffled and displeased.

"Ugh, that was foul. I threw up my whole dinner with that too. I hope it got rid of it..." She said, patting her empty stomach. "But I guess there's no good way to tell if it's gone or not..."

"It's alright. We might not even need to worry about that anymore." Said Halle. She had a serious look on her face and Misa immediately sensed that something had changed.

"How come?" She asked.

"I made some phone calls while you were busy and the ICPO is finally interfering. I don't know any details but the president of the ICPO himself is making sure that L doesn't bother us anymore..."

"_Bother _you?" Interjected Gevanni. "Sorry if I'm butting in but I think he has every right to. That's his child too as far as I know" He said from where he sat on a chair by the bed. Halle diverted her gaze from either of them.

"I know...Sorry, that's just how they put it. I'm not sure what they meant but regardless, we're being relocated to a different city." Said Halle quietly. Misa looked lost as she lowered herself onto the bed.

"What are they going to do Halle? I don't want them to hurt him!" She said firmly. "This isn't worth it if they hurt him, I'd rather see him!"

"No, no it's nothing like that, I'm sure. The ICPO doesn't operate like the mafia, they wouldn't threaten him, they just have their own way of doing things." Halle said. Gevanni looked pointedly at Misa.

"I wouldn't be too sure. I've seen a lot of crazy schemes perpetrated even by the FBI." He told Misa. "You want to know what I think you should do? Here-" He tossed Misa his work phone "-call him and find out yourself. Hell if you don't want to see him ever, then at least tell him. I work for the guy and I think he really wants to find you so if you don't want to see him, then at least save him the trouble of running around the globe looking for you." He said.

Misa held the phone gingerly in her hands. She stared at it, lost in thought.

'_Tell L that I never want to see him again? Is that even true?' _She asked herself. '_I feel like I'm dying just thinking about doing that...I can't. At least not now, maybe someday I'll be stronger and I'll get over him. But now, I miss him too much, I want him back too much...it just hurts to even try to do something like that...' _

She looked at the phone as her vision blurred with tears that were pooling in her eyes. This whole situation hurt her more than she could say. She stood up, wiped her eyes, and gave the phone back to Gevanni, thanking him for trying to help. She turned to Halle with a new look of determination.

"Alright, when will they come for us?" She asked.

"Tonight." Said Halle.

...

L arrived at the location where the signal was coming from. He grabbed his laptop and hopped out of the taxi. He looked around and saw nothing but a lonely avenue with a large stream of water on one side that ran under a footbridge. There were no buildings there, but on the other side, along the avenue, were a few small shops. He walked around and looked closely at each passerby. There weren't many people there and out of those few, none of them could have been Misa, even in disguise. L sat cross-legged on the ground facing the stream and opened his laptop anxiously.

'_Where is she? I couldn't have gotten the wrong place...this is definitely it.' _He thought as he looked at the blinking dot on the computer screen. There was no mistaking that this was the place. L closed the laptop and looked around again, getting worried. The sun was quickly dying over the horizon and he knew that he didn't have a lot of time. He _needed _to find her now, before he had to leave.

'_Where are you Misa?' _He asked himself. He stood up and walked to the bridge, looking underneath just in case but there was nothing there. He kicked a few stones around and waited another minute. Then he walked back up to the footbridge to get a better vantage point. His body tensed as he caught a glimpse of blonde hair and a petite young woman coming out of a shop across the avenue. His heart nearly leaped out of his chest. He ran closer to the blonde woman but just as he was about to cross the avenue, he saw that it wasn't her. The blonde woman that wasn't Misa unhooked a bicycle from its rack, mounted it, and then rode away as L watched her. He sighed and turned back to the bridge while taking out his cell phone.

'_Only five minutes...I don't understand why I haven't seen her yet...' _He thought frustrated. Then it hit him. He walked over to the footbridge and crossed it again. This time, he observed something in the stream's current. It appeared that it didn't all flow from one direction. Sure enough, there was a small pipe protruding slightly from the ground under the bridge that added to the stream's current.

'_That's right...t__his is where treated water from the city goes...' _He realized. L exhaled and hung his head low, leaning forward on the bridge's border. '_And that's why the signal was moving so strangely before. The tracker was following the path of the sewage system and ended up in this stream. Misa was never here to begin with...' _

He let the heart-sinking realization settle before he ran his hands over his tousled hair. He'd never been so frustrated in his life. The sun finally went down and L knew that he was out of time. He shook his head and scoffed at his own stupidity. This whole thing was his fault, and it was because of his stubbornness and refusal to admit that he'd been a jerk to her that Misa left him. Now in a couple of hours he was going to be on a plane to Winchester, England, and who knew when he would see Misa again.

L crouched into his familiar pose and put his head down, trying not to think anymore. But of course, his mind just kept replaying all the things he'd done to Misa that he wished he could take back or at least apologize for. Then there was his son, whom he had hoped to meet before leaving. Now he might never meet him at all. At that moment L felt an emptiness unlike he'd ever felt before, like something in him was broken, and he desperately wanted to fix it. He stayed like that for a while, waiting for Ferraro's call, resigned. When the call came, L picked it up and spoke in an even, controlled tone.

"You win. I'm not going to chase Misa any more. And I'll leave for England tonight." He said, and hung up immediately after.

Even after the call, L stayed on the bridge a little longer, just looking at the water flowing. He buried his hands in his pockets and got ready to leave when a question popped up in his mind.

'_How did the tracker end up in the sewage?' _He wondered. The tracker did activate, which means that it must have come into contact with stomach acids, which means that Misa most likely ate it. Then how did she know to get rid of it? The tracker was as small as a grain of sand, practically untraceable, and there was no way that she could have known about it...unless, someone told her. L's eyes widened, knowing full well what this all meant.

'_Could it be?...it would explain how Misa was able to anticipate Gevanni at the airport, how she knew about him spying on her, how she knew to get out of the apartment in time for the raid, and how she knew about the tracker...that has to be it...' _He thought, shocked. '_Wammy...told her...'_

It appeared that Gevanni was not the only one who'd betrayed him._  
_


	31. Thunder

**Writer's Note:** _Sooo, I read my writer's note for chapter 1 recently and I burst out laughing at the part that said "I'm going to finish this in 20-25 chapters..." while I am now at chapter, what, 31? Ha. So much for that. I think I'll leave that note as is though, just for giggles. Anyways, __I'm happy with how well this story's been received. I appreciate criticism and praise equally and I'm glad that you guys aren't afraid to let me know if there's something you don't like. Of course, I love it when you also tell me when there's something you loved, so don't forget to review :) till next time_

* * *

-_at an expensive estate in Winchester, England-_

The rain beat down hard on the large windows of the veranda. It was raining so fiercely, the wind carried the rain sideways, dousing the windows and creating intricate patterns as the water ran over them. A housekeeper came in and deposited some trays on the ornate mahogany table, where two men sat in silence. The housekeeper smiled and revealed the dishes she'd delivered.

"Enjoy" She said before taking off.

L stared down at his breakfast of porridge, sausage, and eggs with indifference. He made no move to touch the food, and instead took a napkin and pressed it to his bloody nose. The chain that tied him to the heavy table rattled in the process.

"Not eating again today, detective L?" Asked Ferraro, digging into his breakfast with gusto.

L sniffled into the napkin and looked at his captor. "I don't eat porridge, eggs, or sausage, and I'm not hungry." He said with a rasp as he pressed the napkin against his nose to absorb the blood. Everything hurt right now. His head was pounding, his body felt heavy, and his muscles ached all over. Even breathing was laborious and at times, painful.

He sat slumped in his chair with both feet on the ground, nursing his injury. He really didn't feel like talking, and much less to Ferraro. However, he'd learned the hard way that in this place, giving the silent treatment was a bad idea.

The napkin on his nose quickly turned red and damp and L was forced to reach for another. As he reached out, his bruised ribs stabbed at him, making L wince. Ferraro swallowed a mouthful of porridge and took notice of the detective struggling.

"Here. Take mine." He said, passing L his own napkin. L took it.

"Thank you" Said L as he sank back into his chair.

Ferraro nodded courtly. "I apologize for the savage way that my agents treated you. I assure you, I had no idea. I only arrived here today to find you looking like that..." He gestured to all of L. The detective had bruised eyes, a cut on his cheek, a broken lip, several other bruises, and perhaps even a few cracked ribs. When Ferraro questioned his agents about L's injuries, they all cited his 'uncooperative' behavior as the reason for the beatings.

"...I was also told that you barely ate anything since you've been here." Said Ferraro. L did not even look at him, his eyes glazed over in misery.

"I'm not hungry." He repeated faintly.

"I see." Said Ferraro, cutting into the sausage.

For some time, the sound of Ferraro's cutlery sliding on his plate was all that could be heard inside the veranda. Eager for a distraction, L studied the patterns left on the windows by the pouring rain. Before long, his thoughts drifted toward Misa and the baby.

The corners of his broken mouth tugged slightly into a faint smile as he recalled all the good times with Misa. He thought back on their first outing to the amusement park and how she'd held his arm as they walked around. They weren't together at the time but he actually had a lot of fun that day. He remembered their first real kiss inside the main investigation room, and how awkward and excited he'd been. He remembered their first dinner together, and how she'd slapped him, only to then chase after him in the elevator lobby. He remembered their first time in bed together, as well as the time he'd told her he loved her on the ferris wheel. He'll never forget the look of adoration on her face that evening. Oh, how he missed that look. And of course, he remembered all the times she'd made him lose his mind over some crazy plan of hers to catch Kira on her own.

'_That woman...she never listened.' _He thought fondly, his eyes sparking back to life for a split second. L resisted the urge to sigh, for it would hurt his ribs. He hadn't seen Misa in six months, and from the look of things, it would be a lot longer before he saw her again...if ever.

Faint sounds of thunder could be heard in the distance.

'_I wonder...' _He thought, absently.

His child came to mind, and L was suddenly curious to know if his son had ever heard thunder before. Perhaps he was frightened by it. A lot of children were frightened by the sound of thunder, so it was possible that his son would be too. L exhaled slowly. There was so much that L would have liked to know about his son, like what he looked like, what made him happy, what made him cry, what things caught his attention...

'_But now it's too late...I lost them.' _He thought, resigned, his eyes losing that temporary spark.

After leaving the U.S., L was told that Misa and the baby were being moved to a high-security facility, where even he couldn't reach them. L didn't know how true that was, but regardless, it wasn't like he could go after them anymore, not with the ICPO at his throat.

Do you know why I'm here?" Asked Ferraro, bringing him out of his reverie.

"No." Replied L.

"Care to take a guess?"

"No."

Ferraro looked at him pointedly. "Fair enough, I'll just tell you. I want to give you another chance." He said. "You're a young lad and like most young lads, you've made mistakes due to dumb inexperience. We've all been there. Sometimes all we need is for life to kick us hard in the gut, but then after that, we get ourselves in check and things go smoothly." Said Ferraro pleasantly, setting his fork and knife down. L regarded him cautiously, wondering exactly what he meant by a 'second chance.'

"So, are you interested in striking a truse?" Asked Ferraro, grinning.

"No." L responded dryly. Ferraro's grin widened.

"Oh? I guess you don't want to see Misa or your child ever again, then."

L knew that Ferraro was just saying that to twist his resolve. Yet, he couldn't suppress the glimmer of hope at the thought of seeing them.

"What do you want?" He asked.

Ferraro smiled and held his hand up. "Woah, not so fast, let's not jump to that so quickly, detective L." He said. "I want us to be friends first."

L narrowed his eyes at the other man. '_Friends? Who does he think I am?'_

"Now, now, don't look so skeptic. I'm truly a benevolent man, once you get to know me." Said Ferraro.

"Sure you are, because holding an orphanage hostage is the act of a benevolent man. I believe it." Said L sarcastically. Ferraro's grin disappeared. "Please do tell me, oh-benevolent-one, what's next on your to-do list, pillage a nursery? Or perhaps a hospital? Or-"

"I think I'm starting to see why you earned those bruises." Said Ferraro darkly. A tense silence filled the veranda. Ferraro took a few gulps of his water and pulled something out of his pocket. It was an aluminum flash drive.

"You know what this is?"

L looked at the small device in Ferraro's hand. He'd seen plenty of those in Wammy's House and he could probably guess what was inside that one.

"It's your file from Wammy's House. It was encrypted but thanks to Quillish Wammy's reluctant cooperation, we were able to decipher it."

L tensed ever so slightly. What was Ferraro playing at? L wasn't worried about the contents of his file, for he knew they were limited and obsolete, but he was worried about Watari. He hoped that wherever Ferraro was keeping him, he was being treated decently.

"Well? Aren't you going to comment?" Asked Ferraro, waving the small silver device.

L cocked his head slightly, wondering what he was supposed to say to this. "I hope you found reading about my 8-year-old self a productive use of your time. There's not much in there as you probably already know." Said L with effort.

Ferraro was not amused. "You're right, there isn't, other than the obvious fact that you were an orphan and that you seemed to have some deep behavioral issues as a child. Also, your name is listed as L and your last name as Lawliet. Are those aliases too or are those your real names?"

'_Why is he wasting my time like this?'_ L thought. "Can we revisit the topic of the second chance? I don't see how this is relevant." Said L as he wiped the last bit of blood from his nose.

"Oh but this is relevant. If I'm going to take another chance on you, I need to know you better, judge your character. To do that, I need to know your background."

"They're not aliases." He answered curtly.

"How curious. It also said in there that Wammy adopted you. Why you, of all those children?" Asked Ferraro.

Damn him. Couldn't he see that talking required breath, which caused him pain? L just looked at him with deflated eyes, wondering if Ferraro would have him beaten again if he refused to continue the conversation. Lucky for him a house servant arrived with some papers. Ferraro greeted the man and even shook his hand, taking the pile of papers from him. One in particular rolled off the top and landed right in front of L. It was a magazine. What caught his attention was a picture on the front page of Misa, in all her glory, with the words 'Misa Misa: Pop Idol Mysteriously Goes On Hiatus' written under it.

Ferraro noticed what L was looking at and quickly grabbed the magazine out of L's sight. The raven haired man wished he hadn't, as he was curious to know what spiel they'd fed the media to justify Misa's disappearance. Ferraro placed the magazine at the bottom of the pile.

"Unfortunately, it seems I have other business to attend to, so I'll have to get to the point."

L cheered on the inside.

"I want you to work for the ICPO, or rather for me. You will take every case that I assign to you, without question, and you will also take this..." He said, pulling out a small red phone "...which you will use to report directly to me on all cases I give you. If you can do that, then maybe we'll talk about Misa Amane, is that understood?"

L looked at him feebly. So essentially he was supposed to give up solving only cases he found interesting, in favor of becoming a dog of Interpol, or rather, Ferraro's personal detective dog. The first thing that came to his mind was to say no. It wasn't worth giving up everything he did, and who he was, just for a small, perhaps nonexistent, chance to see Misa again. He might do it for a definite chance, but not for a 'maybe.' Or would he?...

...

An hour later, L was shoved out the front gate to Ferraro's estate, in the pouring rain, with nothing but the red cell phone and a wallet with money. He coughed, and nearly wretched at the pain the movement caused him. He stood, holding on to the fence, catching his breath. The rain was beating down hard, soaking his hair and shirt, and making it stick to his lean torso. The detective stuck the red phone in his pocket, still in denial about having sold himself as a detective.

What was he now? He wasn't his own detective, or person anymore, and by the end of his conversation with Ferraro, he'd practically been reduced to indentured servitude.

"Report to him, he says...and _maybe _he'll let me see them..._maybe. _I'm an idiot. I'm the world's biggest idiot." He said to the rain.

Ferraro didn't even tell him when he'd be releasing Wammy. Without a doubt, L was truly alone now. He stood there for some time with his head hung low, just feeling the rain beating down on him like the million memories rushing through his mind, reminding him that this was all his fault. He sniffled and ran his hand over his nose, staining it with red liquid. He was bleeding again. Great.

He stared at the rain dissolving the blood in his hands and then pushed himself off the fence to begin his walk home. All he wanted to do now was go numb, forget everything that's happened and go back to being his normal, unmitigated self that did what he wanted, when he wanted, and was perfectly content solving puzzles and eating sweets. He wanted to be the way he was before he fell stupid in love with Misa Amane.

"Well Light, it looks like she did us both in. We both lost." He said, envying Light yet again.

While the brunette he once called friend was probably dead already, and free from his turmoil, L's had only just begun, and heaven forbid he had a long life ahead of him to wallow in his regret. The detective tried to push his thoughts aside and focused on putting one foot in front of the other as he carried his battered body home, longing to forget.

...

"Ta-da!" Said Misa, throwing open the door to a newly decorated room. "This is Mello's room. Do you like it?" She asked Halle, who was stepping into the room.

Halle looked around the spacious room, impressed with Misa's handiwork; she sure had an eye for aesthetics. Little Mihael's room was painted gray, with lots of bubbly red and white shapes on the walls. The floor was carpeted white, but Misa had added a large area rug that was red with white accents, to match the bubbly shapes. The rest of the furniture in the room was white wood with red accents and as a final touch, Misa had placed a large red "M" on the wall directly behind his crib.

"Pretty awesome, I must say." Said Halle. "And you did it all by yourself too, kudos."

Misa placed her hands on her hips and looked around proudly. As far as she knew, the nursery was something that a mother and father generally did together, so at first she was sad that she couldn't share this with L. But she threw herself into the project anyway, did the work of two people, and in the end, it turned out pretty good.

Misa walked over to Mihael's crib and looked adoringly at the 5-month-old baby. His blonde hair had grown out a little more and he often rolled onto his stomach in an attempt to crawl. Her favorite part about him though was the constant baby babble that he engaged in, as if talking to himself in an unintelligible language that only he understood. She could listen to him for hours.

Her phone rang.

"Waah, I have to go. Detective business is calling..." She said, rushing out of the room.

Misa ran down the stairs and out of her apartment. This new place that they had been taken to after L's invasion was a 10-story building that housed several ICPO offices on the first floors and a couple of penthouse apartments toward the top. Currently, she occupied the 9th and 10th floors, while Halle was on the 7th and 8th floors. They both loved it, and it wasn't too far from Halle's old apartment, which made it easier to transition into.

The blonde exited the elevator and prepared to enter her very own investigation room, on the first floor. She actually hated that room, its gloominess, its minimalist decor, the dozens of computer monitors facing a single long desk with a chair just for her. In short, it looked too much like the main investigation room in the KIT Headquarters. One time she could have sworn she saw L sitting there, but it had been just her tired mind playing cruel tricks on her.

She ran over to the main computer and plopped herself down on the big chair. As if on cue, Ferraro's face appeared on the large screen before her.

"Hello, Misa" He said.

"Hi Mr. Ferraro. It's great to see your face again!" She said cheerfully.

"Likewise" He told her. "Are you adjusting well to your new facilities?"

"Yeah! They're great..." She said, thinking of how to phrase her next question. "So um, have you heard anything about L yet? I'm actually really surprised that he just disappeared after the raid and stuff. It's like he dropped off the face of the planet or something like that..." She said, frowning.

Ferraro kept a serious face. "I'm afraid I don't have any news for you on that front. I have not seen, or heard anything about detective L ever since the raid. I wouldn't worry about it anymore, besides you've been doing such a fine job as a detective, I've heard that you're quite a fast learner. You should leave detective L to us and just focus on your own detective duties." He said, almost father-like.

"Okay..." She said, trying to mask her disappointment.

...

It was late and the rain had finally died down. Watari walked into his and L's house in Winchester expecting to find his adoptive son inside. The place was more like a hideout more than an actual home, with its vacuous spaces filled with only the necessary things and the many computers and tv's that L required. On his way in, Watari stepped over some glass from a broken tv monitor.

"Hm? What's this?" He muttered.

The crunching underneath his feet became constant the further he walked into the living room. Watari's brow knit together into a frown as he noted the dozens of monitors and computer equipment strewn around, giving him the impression that someone ransacked the place.

"L? Are you here?" He called out but heard no response.

This was strange because as far as Watari knew, the ICPO had not found this place, and nothing seemed to be missing, just broken and thrown about. He continued to call for L as he traveled up the stairs. The upstairs part was completely dark as well and when he turned on the lights, he saw that like the downstairs area, things were thrown all around, but there was also vomit everywhere, as well as an empty bottle of whiskey.

"No!" Gasped the old man upon finding L strewn out on the single couch in the place, unconscious. He ran over to the young man and took his pulse, noting how cold L's body felt. The detective was soaked and covered in cold sweat and more bruises than he cared to count, but he still had a pulse.

"L" He said, but received no response. Watari pulled L's hair off his forehead and that's when he noticed his slightly blue appearance and his slow, labored breathing.

"But I don't understand, L doesn't drink..." He said to himself with grief as he took out his cell phone to call for help.

...


	32. Nightmare

**Writer's Note:** _Hi there, readers! I have a long writer's note for this chapter, which I'll leave for the end. You guys will quickly notice that this is a very unusual chapter. Also, **Psytrance**, consider your request answered :) See?__ I do listen to my readers...sometimes :D_  


* * *

L was shivering, covered in cold sweat and gasping for air...he heard voices, and felt things being done to his body. He felt his muscles shaking, contracting violently and painfully, as though they had a mind of his own. Every bit of him was failing, breaking down, but his mind went on, helplessly registering it all in a state of panic. Who knew that dying could be this chaotic? When he thought the worst would come, everything fell silent and still. His eyes opened but he saw nothing, then he saw lights above him, and shapes hovering over him too. They were talking to him, trying to bring him back, but he was too tired to move, and in spite of their best efforts, L closed his eyes and slipped into a world of memories.

-_In Russia 1986 -_

4:30 am. The mournful knocking on the door signaled that it was time to get up for the daily grind. Six dark haired boys with cobalt eyes sighed and groaned in protest, dreading the long work day ahead. Likewise, the other inhabitants of the crowded residence came to life as they joined in the chorus of non-verbal complaints. The eldest brother, a 16-year-old boy with a serious face shook his head upon noticing the mass that lingered on the top corner bunk, like a forgotten lump under the sheets.

"Hey you." He said sternly. "Get up."

At first nothing happened, then the sheets on that top corner bunk parted to reveal yet another raven-haired boy, who unlike the others, seemed calm, and almost careless as he took his time getting out of bed.

…

L felt things being inserted into his cold and battered body. All the while, someone kept telling him to "wake up" or "get up" but he just didn't have it in him this time. He was tired and he didn't feel like trying either.

…

By the time the small boy lazily made his way downstairs, everyone was already gathered around the big stove, demanding breakfast. The small boy took a seat on the stairs and watched the scene from a distance.

His family was large, full of strapping dark haired young men and women, who in his opinion were hard-working, but utterly ignorant, or even stupid. And they were poor too, so much so, that his immediate family, cousins, and extended family had to live together in one house. That made seven boys, five girls, and six adults, all living in a house built for a single family. Overall, the place was a hellhole and he hated it.

He saw his mother, a small raven-haired woman slaving away at the stove, making breakfast for everyone. She frowned as she measured each portion carefully so as to have enough to feed each hungry mouth. Unfortunately, in spite of her best efforts, it was never enough to satisfy.

The small boy then looked at his father, a tall muscular man in his late 30's with short but messy black hair and kind, dark brown eyes. While everyone else waited for food, the man was already sitting at the table, eating, because as the primary breadwinner in the house, he was always served first.

Someone tripped over him on the stairs, letting out a slew of curses. "You, watch yourself! You'll cause an accident sitting on the stairs like that!" Chastised his uncle, stepping over him on the stairs.

The small boy said nothing and only curled up into himself even more. Being one of the negligible middle children, and the smallest in size, he was used to being overlooked.

He went back to watching his father eat when he noticed the man looking right at him with those piercing brown eyes. The small boy froze. In all his life, his father had never looked at him before and he often wondered if the man even recognized him as his son...then, just like that, his father went back to looking at his plate as though nothing happened.

...

On the way out, his father kissed his mother goodbye and whispered something in her ear. She smiled for the first time that morning. Satisfied, his father went to start the pickup truck along with his uncle. It was time to go. His oldest brother counted them all as they passed him in a single file out the door, noticing that again, one was missing.

"Hey! You! Come here, we're leaving" His brother called when he saw him still curled up on the stairs. The small boy sighed and obliged. What a pain.

Every day it was the same thing. They got up before dawn to go work at Metaldome, the metal factory, with their father and uncle. After working for a few hours, they went to school, and after that they went back to Metaldome to work until nightfall. Then, they would go back home, dying of hunger, only to find out that dinner was scarce.

That was every day for them, but not for the small boy. He followed his own itinerary. Metaldome was enormous, like a small city of metal, and as soon as his family separated to their individual sections, he slipped away, never to be missed. And while everyone in his family slaved away like overworked dogs, he did no work at all. While the others always went home starving and begging for more, he ate plenty, probably more than all of them combined. And while his whole family wallowed in poverty, he had money to spare, all hidden away. How did he manage all of this? He shirked away from manual labor and worked smarter, not harder. Instead of wasting his life at boring Metaldome, he went to the market and made money off of foreigners who needed a translator for the day, or a guide, or any other menial favor, really. It was way better money than the rest of them made at the factory, that's for sure.

…

On the days the market was slow due to crummy weather, the boy trudged back to the factory for the day. For hours he'd run around Metaldome, climbing and poking around the beastly machinery, pretending to do work. Eventually while roaming the factory, he got so bored he invented a game and challenged his two younger brothers, who were four and five, to play. The game involved tying a rope on a high surface, playing cards, and climbing heavy machinery. It was dangerous, but he'd promised the youngsters a prize they could not refuse. Needless to say, it wasn't a good game to play, and by the end, his youngest brother had accidentally sliced off a finger…

…

"Hey you! We're leaving, hurry up, we're starving!" His oldest brother called from the pickup truck.

At nights, the small boy made sure to arrive by the pickup truck, just in time to wipe his brow and say how "hard" he'd worked that day. None of his siblings ever believed it. His oldest brother even gave him a disapproving look, knowing well that he'd done nothing all day. Whatever. As long as the others didn't rat him out, the boy didn't care. Mules like them would never understand him. Metaldome was their life, the sole source of sustenance and it would be for the rest of their lives. He, on the other hand would rather die than accept that as his fate and very soon, he was going to run away to do bigger and better things.

...

Late into the night, on the lonely block of family houses, the small boy with pale skin and hair black as a crow ran like his life depended on it. Behind him, in the distance, a large, imposing structure was lit up in flames. The word "METALDOME" was painted on the facade of the gargantuan factory that was now disintegrating at 5000 degrees. The boy stopped for a moment to catch his breath, his heart pounding in his chest. It wasn't part of his original plan to set Metaldome ablaze. He'd only gone there to mess with the controls, and maybe put that horrible place out of commission for the week. Nothing major. Just when it looked like he was going to succeed, a pipe busted and the place caught fire. He ran out and by the time he was at the front gate the main building was engulfed in flames, quickly followed by everything else.

Feeling rested, the boy ran the rest of the block toward his modest home. The lights were off, indicating that everyone was asleep. Like he'd done countless times before, the boy climbed the rusty old fire escape ladder up to the attic part of the house. He reached the top and crawled into a tight nook that only someone his size could fit through. With practiced hands, he felt around for the opening into his room, and when he found it, he quickly shoved the lid aside and jumped down into the top bunk of his bed.

Just when he thought he was safe, the lights turned on and the boy found himself being stared down by six pairs of dark eyes.

"Where are you coming from, ferret?" Asked his eldest brother.

The small boy rolled his eyes. He had a name but no one ever used it. He was always referred to as just 'you,' and when he wasn't, his brothers called him a 'ferret' because of his curved posture and stealth.

"Didn't you hear me? I asked you where you went at this hour."

He curled up in his bed, pretending to be asleep.

"We know you're not really sleeping. If you're gonna get us into trouble then at least tell us what you did this time"

The other six boys looked at the small figure on the top bunk with piercing glares. The door opened and a very angry teenage girl appeared with a group of smaller girls behind her.

"What the hell is this fuss?!" Asked the girl. She glared at the oldest brother. "In case you didn't get the memo, it's 2 am and people are trying to sleep!" She hissed.

Before anyone could answer, a procession of black cars entered their cul-de-sac, stopping directly at their house. The small boy jumped up from his bed in a panic. How could this be? He'd been careful to avoid the cameras, and he was certain that no one saw him anywhere near Metaldome tonight. So why, then, was the police here?

It wasn't just the police though. It was the owner of Metaldome, a man so powerful and corrupt that he had the law in his pockets and with it, everyone else, his family included. There was a loud knock on the door.

"Lawliet! Lawliet! I know you're in there so open the door!" Called the owner to his father, with his goons at his back.

Realizing that all was lost, the boy decided then and there to realize his plan to run away. While his brothers and cousins were distracted with the commotion, the boy threw the sheet off his bed and dug his hand into the mattress, pulling out fistfuls of money and shoving them into his pants.

"Look! Look at all that money!" Yelled one of the younger brothers upon noticing what he was doing. The others looked at him, shocked, and he quickly removed the lid above his bed. Just as he lifted himself into the opening, someone grabbed his legs, pulling him down.

"Let go!" He yelled, kicking with all his might.

He fell down to the bed and onto the floor. The door burst open again, only this time it was his father standing there with and expression that was as cold as steel. The children froze and the man ordered everyone to their beds, with the exception of the small boy. At that point the boy made a run for it but his father stopped him, grabbing him roughly by the shoulder, causing him to whimper.

The man whom he called father, who never even acknowledged him, dragged him downstairs, to join his aunts and uncle, his mother, and the owner of Metaldome, who had a revolver in his hand. His mother threw herself at the small boy, sobbing and hugging him as if he were the most precious thing she owned. He'd never been hugged by his mother before… he didn't know what to do. The moment was broken by the owner's voice ordering his father to shoot the boy with the revolver. His aunts gasped and his uncle tried to peel his mother off of him. His father's face was unreadable as he looked at him in his mother's arm. Just when he thought his father might argue, he ripped him out of his mother's embrace and took the revolver from the owner. His last memory of his mother was of her desperately crying, throwing herself at the owner's feet as she begged the man for her little son's life. Next thing he knew, his father took the revolver and smashed the blunt end of it against the back of his head.

…

L stirred in his sleep and his breathing was labored. Whether this was from a reaction to the chemicals that kept him alive, or from the nightmarish memories, no one could know.

…

When he regained consciousness, he found himself strapped to the passenger seat of his dad's pickup truck. It was already light outside, indicating that they had been driving for many hours. The boy looked at his sire, teary-eyed and with his head hung low in shame.

"I'm sorry." He said in a barely audible whisper. "It was an accident."

For miles, his dad said nothing and his face remained stoic. The boy looked out the window, not recognizing any of the terrain, and wondered if his father was taking him to slaughter. Faced with possible death, he felt a huge sense of guilt overwhelm him, and, with his head down, he wept.

"Stop crying." His dad said finally. "You're better than that…"

The boy looked up suddenly, surprised, not because his father had said something to him at last, but because his father had called him by his name. The sound felt so foreign to his ears that he barely recognized it as his, but even so…his father knew who he was.

"You seem surprised." He told his son with a half-smile. "I know quite a lot about you, believe it or not."

And so he did. His father knew everything, from his birthday that they never celebrated, to his insatiable sweet tooth, and he even knew about the frequent visits to the market and the deals he made with foreigners. The small boy was in awe. All his life he'd believed that his parents didn't care about him, when in fact, they loved him.

It all suddenly made sense, why his father always worked so hard, never once complaining, and never regretting. Likewise, his mom worked nonstop inside the house just to make sure that they had as much as they could. It was because they loved him, and his siblings that they worked so much and as a result, spent so little time with them, that they seemed indifferent, when it was the exact opposite.

They entered a strange town where the signs were in a different language. There, the pickup truck slowed to a halt. His father got out of the car and instructed him to do the same. The boy ran to his side and the dark haired man knelt down and put a hand on his son's disheveled head.

"I told that bad man that I would take you somewhere and kill you." Said his father. "But I'm not going to. I will go home and say I did, which means that you cannot come back with me. You can never come back, is that understood?"

The boy looked down at his feet and nodded his head.

"If you come back, our whole family will get into a lot of trouble, starting with me. I'm serious."

"I know." Said the boy meekly.

"Good. We just crossed over into a different place, far from home. That's why everything here seems strange to you, but I know you can do well here. Just keep walking down this road, and eventually you'll hit the town square. There you'll find people who can help you, places you can stay, and work that you can do." He said. "And take this—"He deposited a bag full of the money from his mattress into the boy's hands"—this is a good amount, it'll get you where you want to go." He said. With that, he hugged his son for the first time, and took off, never to see him again.

…

Months later, the boy found himself in a whole other world. He'd done everything his father told him to do in that place, and before long, he found more foreigners that needed a travel companion. They were all very nice and paid very generously. The boy was doing pretty well, until a bad man posing as a foreigner recruited him as an assistant for a renown criminal organization.

His job for the mob was simple. All he had to do was translate for the mobsters on both sides during certain "transactions," usually negotiations or interrogations. While the vocabulary of the mobsters wasn't terribly extensive in any language, and was mostly comprised of phrases involving money, weapons, drugs, sex, and the authorities, the boy had to learn to be fluent in these kinds of conversations. They weren't things that normally came up in his dealings with nice tourists at the market.

Sometimes, he had to make threats and say profanities to enemy mobsters, which never failed to shock them, given his puny appearance. Yet, he was surprisingly good at making threats. It wasn't always fun though. A lot of people got hurt in the mob and more than once he watched people die because a negotiation turned sour.

He also learned a lot during that time, not just about organized crime but about himself too. For example, he discovered that he enjoyed the intricacies of the schemes the mobsters sometimes put together as well as the way they manipulated the police like pawns on a chessboard. It was pretty fascinating. The mobsters took good care of him too. They clothed him, gave him all the sweets he wanted, and even took him on "business" trips to the best hotels. It was a mutually beneficial gig, and for a time things were good.

However, it all evaporated after an unexpected raid of the mob's cartel put many of the mobsters in prison and the boy in an orphanage run by nuns. And that, was by far the worst place he'd ever been to. The nuns were harsh and they tried to force feed him religious dogmas that he had no interest in following. He could read about the different religions, but he didn't feel drawn to practice any of them, which of course, was unacceptable to the nuns.

In retaliation, he often rebelled by arguing with the nuns, which only earned him time in solitary confinement. When his protests fell on deaf ears, the boy moved on to spreading false rumors about the scriptures taught at the orphanage. Elaborate lies spewed from him and he reveled in watching the nuns cry out in frustration, wondering where all this misinformation was originating. With time, he poisoned the minds of the other orphans and they too began to argue and question, but by then, the nuns had zeroed in on him as the source of the problem.

Time in solitary confinement became a regular thing for him, and every day he spent more and more time alone. Eventually he came to enjoy solitude, noting that it was better to be alone than to be in such bad company. Not only that but he could read and study as much as he wanted when he was locked up. He read everything he could get his hands on, from math books, to history books, to science books and encyclopedias. Through reading, he refined his vocabulary to that above the base lower-class and mob-speak jargon that he'd been using his whole life.

He made solitary confinement a time for self-improvement and knowledge, an absolute necessity. He'd get up every day and purposely act out, or do something terrible during Morning Prayer, just to be placed in solitary confinement for the day, where he wouldn't be disturbed. It was great.

But that didn't last either. Eventually the nuns figured out that he'd just been toying with them all along and decided to transfer him to a different orphanage. Months later, that orphanage also found the boy troublesome and sent him away to an all-boys' home in Southampton, England.

By then the boy was nearing his 8th birthday, had been passed around three different orphanages, and was about to be passed on to a fourth one because the director of the Southampton all-boys home despised him. Lucky for him, at least those people recognized his extraordinary mental abilities and called in someone from a nearby orphanage in Winchester to meet him. That someone was Quillish Wammy, the founder of Wammy's House.

The day that Wammy was to visit the boys' home, the caretakers did everything humanly possible to prepare him. They brushed his teeth several times, they clothed him in the best clothes they could find, and they took on the daunting task of trying to make his rebellious hair stay down. They even considered putting bronzer on him just to make him look less pale!

"Sit still!" Fussed Dorothea, the old female caretaker as she fought to keep his hair down.

"I am still! You're the one who keeps tilting my head at weird angles and making me feel like my head will swivel out of place, which would then cause you to be charged with child abuse by the SCPD!" Said the boy in protest.

The caretaker sighed. "Quiet, you. Now, if only your hair weren't possessed." She lamented. "I've tried everything…extra conditioner to weight it down, hair gel, straightener, hairspray…and forget combing, I've been combing so much my poor arm feels like it's going to fall off, and if it does…" She lightly tapped his nose with the tip of her index finger. "…then it will be _you_ who gets charged with assault, young man, or rather your hair will." She said smiling.

"It doesn't work that way Dorothea." He said matter-of-factly. "I would never be charged for such a thing because I'm a minor and there's no probable cause to believe that I can make your arm fall off…or like you said, that my hair can make your arm fall off. Besides, the odds of that happening are much less than 1% so I don't think you'll be able to build a solid case against me." Said the young boy as the caretaker led him by the arm to wait in the common room.

"You're too clever for your own good child…" Said the woman.

"No I'm not…" Said the boy looking up at her. "And tell me, Dorothea, why did we spend all this time enhancing my physical appearance? It's not like I'm going to a child modeling agency. I'm going to an orphanage! I should look like an orphan with my hair like this-" Said the boy, shaking his head, making his hair wild again.

"Stop it! Now you ruined it…all that hard work" Said the caretaker, resigned.

The little boy's eyes danced with mischief and Dorothea couldn't help but smile. She would never admit it, but she was going to miss that little boy.

"He's here! Mr. Quillish Wammy is here, hurry up, bring the boy" Called Seymour Wester, the director of the boys' home. He looked down at the dark-haired boy. "We're going to meet Mr. Wammy now. Whatever you do, _don't_ say anything outrageous." He warned.

They walked into the parlor and the director quickly introduced himself to the older gentleman with a kind face, gray hair and glasses.

"And this here is the boy…" Said the director, bringing the boy forward. "I'm afraid we don't really know his birth name because when he came here, he claimed to not remember it, so we've just been calling him Dorian…but of course, you're free to call him whatever you'd like, seriously he's all yours, please…" rambled the director, practically begging to be rid of him.

"Hello there, Dorian" Said Wammy. The boy cringed at the name. He hated it.

"No name for now is fine, please. I don't like to be called Dorian." Said the boy, making the director shoot him a dirty look. The boy reached into his back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "Do you invest in the stock market, Mr. Wammy? Because if you do, I have some suggestions for stocks to buy that would be very beneficial to your finances." Said the boy handing him the piece of paper.

"Where did he get that?!" Whispered the director to Dorothea. The old caretaker shrugged. "I knew we should have drugged him to make him less talkative." He whispered.

"I can hear you, you know" Said the boy shamelessly to the director.

Wammy took the paper and read the names listed, knowing that they were real companies. He looked at the numbers and graphs scribbled on there, appraising the formulas and their genuinity. "Very interesting, and how do you know all this?" he asked the boy.

"I've read about financial models and I did some extensive calculations to project future value of those stocks. Also I have experience with money matters such as earning it, investing it, stealing it, and laundering it. You see, I spent some time working for the Russian mob and—" he was stopped abruptly by the director's hand on his mouth.

"Okay! That is enough talking for you, Dorian!" The director laughed nervously. "Mr. Wammy, please excuse him, he's got such elaborate stories…you know kids, they say the darnest things! But he's very clean and very intelligent, as you can see…eh, would you care for some tea?"

Wammy politely declined the offer, saying that he had to be heading out soon. Just when the director thought all was lost, and that he'd be stuck with the boy, Wammy leaned over to the boy and smiled.

"My orphanage is called Wammy's House and it is a highly specialized place where we nurture the talents and abilities of gifted children to the highest potential. It is our greatest hope that everyone that goes through Wammy's House will use their gifts to better humanity." He said. "Does that sound like a place that you would be interested in?" He asked.

The boy chewed lightly on his index finger and thought about it. The director was ready to pinch him if he said no.

"Yes, I think so" He said finally.

Wammy smiled again and patted him on the head. "Very well…but we'll have to do something about your name. You see at Wammy's House, we give names and aliases based on the English alphabet system so—"

"Can I be called L?" Said the boy, looking up, still biting on his finger.

"Just L?"

"Yes, please" He said.

"That'll be just fine." Said Wammy

At that moment, L smiled for the first time in a while. Throughout his short life he'd been called by many different names, but at last, he had a name that felt right. After that, Wammy walked out hand in hand with the latest addition to Wammy's House.

…

L was starting to feel stable. Was he dead? If so, being dead felt a lot like being comatose in a hospital bed.

…

Just an hour after arriving at Wammy's House, L had already caused a commotion. He'd gotten into an altercation with some of the older boys over some toys in the common room. It seemed that L had no notion of sharing the things he liked, and he also seemed to be utterly incompatible with the other children. As a precaution, Wammy decided to send him to his room for the time being.

"Alright L. Here you are" He said, opening the door. Inside the room, there were two sides that mirrored each other and on the far side by the window, another boy was sitting on his bed, reading a thick biology book.

"Hello Ethan, this is your new roommate, L" Said Wammy pleasantly.

The boy on the bed said a quick and shy hello before turning back to his book. This other boy was small and skinny, just like L, but with short brown hair, thick glasses and braces. He looked to be about the same age as L too.

"Hi." Said L with disinterest.

"I'll leave you two to get acquainted with each other" Said Wammy, closing the door behind him.

L climbed atop his bed and sat there, staring at Ethan, biting his thumb. The other boy was so engrossed in his biology book that he did not even notice him staring. He also did not notice when L left the room minutes later and began to hoard all the best toys from the common room under his bed. In fact, he did not look up at all from his book until L burst open the door and ran over to him.

"Ethan! We have to get out of here, this is very bad. The older boys that tried to coddle me earlier are on their way here and they're going to do some terrible injustice to us. You have to come!" He said, alarmed.

The brunette looked unsure of whether to leave his room or not.

"I think I'm just gonna stay here, thanks."

"But they'll get you!" Said L, annoyed that Ethan wasn't going along with his plan. "You have to come."

"It's Ok."

"Fine" Said L. "Suit yourself, but later don't say I didn't warn you…" And with that, he left.

Moments later, a group of older boys that looked to be about twelve entered the room.

"Well what's this, Moresly? Stashing all the good things, huh?" Said one of the older boys, pointing at his bed. The brunette seemed uncertain until he looked at what the older boy was pointing at and saw the pile of toys underneath his bed.

….

After dinner and three large pieces of cake, L returned to the room to find Ethan huddled on the bed with his knees drawn to his chest, weeping. His biology book had been torn apart, with pages strewn all over, and the toys that were under his bed were all missing.

L climbed on the other boy's bed and patted Ethan on the head.

"I told you, you should have come" He said. Ethan looked up and L saw that his glasses were also broken.

"You…you did that! You took those toys from the common room. You're a thief and a liar…I hate you." Said Ethan, hiccupping.

"No I'm not!" Said L.

Ethan looked at him with contempt and threw a punch at L's face. L fell back on the bed, caught off-guard by what Ethan had just done. Slowly, he straightened back up on the bed and massaged his cheek.

"Ethan…are you familiar with the expression _lex talionis_?" Asked L.

"It's a latin expression that means 'an eye for an eye'?" The other boy responded, and as soon as he did, L buried his own fist in the other boy's face. The raven-haired boy put all the strength he'd gained climbing the Metaldome and the old fire escape into that punch and Ethan went falling off the bed, crying harder than ever. Enraged, the brunette yelled and threw himself at L, and the two went at it anew.

…

In the director's office, Ethan and L sat on the two chairs facing the big mahogany desk. One boy was snot-nosed and crying with a bloody lip, while the other sat passively, staring blankly at the old man sitting across the desk. Wammy looked at both boys mournfully as Roger Ruvie, his co-director shook his head disapprovingly.

"Open your eyes Quillish" Said Roger stiffly. "It is very clear what must be done here. Ethan has been with us since he was three. Over the years he has demonstrated that he is sweet-tempered, obedient, studious, and most importantly, he has never been in trouble until now."

At the mention of his name and the word "trouble" in the same sentence, Ethan buried his face in his hands and cried loudly into his hands.

"L, however, has only been here for a few hours and already caused two major incidents. Two! From the looks of it, this boy is a complete scrapper. He is aggressive, and antisocial." Said Roger, looking at L with disapproval.

L simply gazed at his feet and twiddled his toes, saying nothing to defend himself.

"Boys, please wait outside" Said Wammy, resting his elbows on the table. The two boys sat on some chairs outside the office and even though the door was closed, they could still hear everything perfectly.

"What do you propose I do Roger?" Asked Wammy.

"Isn't it obvious? Send L back to the Southampton boys' home tonight. He doesn't belong here. He's a bad apple, a parasite, just look at what he did to Ethan! It's no wonder Seymour wanted to get rid of him, the boy is a complete monster." He said. "Get him out of here as soon as possible. I think that would be best."

"I can't. Seymour won't take him back. He has no other place to go."

"Then dump him somewhere else, let him be someone else's problem." Said Roger.

And just like that, it was settled that L was to be passed on to yet another orphanage, which didn't surprise him. He was used to it by now, though it stung a little more than usual because for a fleeting moment he thought that he'd finally found a home.

After that, L and Ethan were walked back to their room. While Ethan solemnly gathered the torn pages of his biology book, L curled up against the backrest of his bed, staring at his feet. For an hour straight, that's all he did, until finally he got up and ran back to the director's office. He opened the mahogany door without announcing himself and a surprised Wammy stood from his desk.

"L!" Said the old man.

The boy ran toward him and threw his arm around the old man, pressing his face against the man's jacket. L clung to Wammy like his life depended on it. The old man put his hands on the boy's shoulders and noticed they were shaking.

"I'm sorry…p-please don't. Send me away…" He said in between chokes. "I know I messed up. I always do but please…I promise. I won't do it again…."

The old man knelt down to L's eye level and gave him a handkerchief to dry off his face that was now covered with hot tears. L hugged Wammy again as his breathing came in rugged, uneven gasps.

"I'm s-sorry. Please. Mr. Wammy, give me another chance…"

And not a moment later, L unleashed a broken cry, muffled by the hug. It was a cry full of anguish and desperation that made his little body shake and his heart clench as it released all the sadness he'd felt since he left his family.

L did not go to a fifth orphanage that night, nor any day thereafter. From then on, Wammy made it his personal affair to care for L as though he were his own. It wasn't easy, and it took a lot of patience, but with time and a lot of trial and error, L found his way. Wammy's House became his rock of stability, the permanent place where he could be understood, and though it was not without faults, it most certainly felt like home.

* * *

_**Writer's note: **So there's something I want to say about this chapter because it's so different from all the others, and could probably be its own stand-alone-thing. But here's why I put it here: I read a very interesting comment/suggestion in one of the reviews about delving into L's childhood, especially after last chapter when Ferraro brings up L's file from Wammy's and his behavioral issues. I had been toying with the idea of doing something like this a while back but I couldn't really find a place to put it so I abandoned it. Then I was going to make it into a separate thing, like "The Story of L" or something, but, here I introduce a character that will be used in "End Games" later so I thought that maybe I should put it here. Also, given the circumstance of last chapter, I thought it might work here, I don't know. But, anyways, here it is, my crazy idea of L's origins._

_Also, I partially was inspired to write this by a short manga created by Ohba and Obata detailing L's arrival at Wammy's House. He really did beat up a bunch of kids within the first hour of being there haha. I think it's called "L File No. 15" or something like that.  
_


	33. Home

**Writer's Note: **_Hi readers how are you all? I hope you are all enjoying the story so far. I think I've frustrated you all so much but I promise that L and Misa will meet soonish =) Don't forget I love all comments, questions, concerns, and compliments so keep them coming whether they're to tell me you like this or to tell me that it sucks D:. Thanks and read on!  
_

* * *

L opened his eyes to find himself in a white, sterile room, with tubes and needles sticking out of his arms. He looked around drowsy and disoriented, just barely recognizing the Wammy's House infirmary. He was home. L thought he was alone until he heard shuffling and humming from somewhere in the room. L's eyes followed the sound and quickly landed on a lanky young man with styled, edgy brown hair that hung partially over one of his eyes.

"Ah you're awake! Finally, some excitement!" Said the man, approaching him with a spring in his step. "Just kidding! There's been plenty of excitement these past three days. You died twice!"

The man proceeded to prick and prod at L more roughly than necessary, giggling to himself whenever the raven-haired man flinched in pain.

"Who are you?" Asked L, surprising himself with how low and raspy his voice sounded.

The young man came up close to L's face, grinning. "You really don't remember me?" He asked.

L narrowed his eyes and racked his brain, trying to put a name to him, but each time he came up empty.

"Hah, and here I thought you didn't forget things..." Said the man. "Here...maybe this will help your poor memory" He said, pulling back the hair off his face. "Now picture this, but with thick rimmed glasses and braces." Said the man with glint in his eyes.

"Oh..." Said L, clearing his parched throat. "It's you. Ethan. Ethan Moresly."

Moresly straightened up abruptly, delighted by L's realization. L didn't remember his old roommate at Wammy's House being so hyperactive, in fact, he recalled him being quiet and aloof. Then again, from the looks of it, Ethan had changed a lot over the years, whether or not for the better, he hadn't decided yet.

"Good, good!" Said Moresly walking toward a small metal cart, his lab coat swishing behind him. The man hummed to himself as he fiddled with something on the cart, occassionally chuckling. L looked at him curiously.

"Why are you laughing?" He asked. Moresly's chilling laughter increased.

"Because I think life is _so funny_...L. Here I was, hoping that something terrible would happen to you all these years, and lo-and-behold, you end up on my operating table of all places, more dead than alive, wheelchair wasted with a standardized BAC higher than your IQ score, and I have to admit...I was eating it all up, watching you convulse in your deathbed. But then Wammy came up to me all teary-eyed, _begging_ me to pull you from your grave, and I couldn't help but think how ironic the situation was. I wanted you dead, yet I was the one charged with the arduous task of saving you" He sighed. "And you want to know why? Because I'm the best fucking MD there is. I've performed thousands of complex, high-risk procedures and not once have I lost a life. Trust me, I've had to work some serious magic for some cases, and I wasn't about to tarnish my record with your pathetic ass."

L said nothing. He always knew that Moresly had an aversion toward him, but not to the extent that he would want him dead.

Moresly's cheerful expression dissipated. "And you know what pisses me off the most? That Wammy favored you even though I was the better kid. I would have been a better son to him than you ever were." He said, brandishing some painful-looking instruments on the metal cart_._

L eyed him wearily. He knew exactly why Moresly despised him. It was because Wammy was originally going to adopt him, but after L arrived, Wammy took him instead of Ethan. Surely that was a huge blow for the brunette standing before him, but as far as L was concerned, his animosity was misplaced because he never asked Wammy to adopt him.

"But you were just _so _special, who could argue?" Moresly continued, his voice hot with pent-up anger."It was always L this, L that..."

Moresly finally settled on an icepick-looking object and began to clean it disdainfully. As if robbing him of a father wasn't enough, L had also made his stay at Wammy's a nightmare. For an orphan, L was a complete brat who got whatever he wanted, when he wanted it, and he also lied a lot, which more than a handful of times got Moresly into trouble. Eventually, the two of them became so hostile toward each other that Wammy saw no choice but to separate them. After one year of living with Moresly, L got a room to himself. A whole fucking room, full of computers and all the coolest toys that L requested. It was bullshit.

At that moment, Wammy came into the room.

"L!" He said, relieved. L had never been happier to see him. Wammy approached his son and put his hand on his forehead, brushing the strands of black hair to the side.

"This is good. You don't have a fever anymore." The old man commented.

"I told you I wasn't going to let him die." Said Moresly, slapping a cheerful smile on his face.

He took an enormous syringe from the cart and came at L with it. The detective pulled back but Moresly still managed to plunge the needle into the side of his chest forcefully, causing him to grunt in pain.

"Relax, you pansy. I'm only removing excess air around your lung." Said the doctor with a wicked smile on his face. Just because he wasn't going to let L die didn't mean he couldn't cause him pain.

Wammy grimaced at the sight and asked for the full rundown of L's injuries. Moresly began to list them in a labored tone.

"Well, he's got internal injuries caused by _whatever_, I'm sure he can tell you why he's busted all over. He's got a broken nose, that'll heal on its own..." He addressed L now. "You had severe alcohol poisoning and we had to pump your stomach, and last but not least you have four fractured ribs, and a punctured lung, which is why you can't breathe properly..." He said, wiggling the needle in L's side ever so slightly, before yanking it out painfully. L clenched his jaw, trying not to give Moresly the satisfaction of knowing he was causing him pain.

'_This is just what I needed...mild torture...' _He groaned and shifted to his side, curling up the way he liked in spite of the discomfort.

"Thank you, Ethan." Said Watari.

Moresly beamed at him, basking in his praise.

"So how long will he be like this?" Asked Watari.

"Oh he can get up any time he wants to, he should just avoid exercise, and be prepared for some well deserved misery!" He said smiling.

"I'm sorry?"

"Nevermind. His ribs and lung aren't going to heal for another three months and the process will be painful." He said, savoring that last word. "Anyways, I'm going to leave now, Wammy. I have better things to do, like water my cacti." Said Moresly, leaving them.

L was relieved to see him go. Moresly was getting on his nerves, literally, and it would be best to leave his care as soon as possible. Watari turned to L and sat down on the nearby armchair.

"What happened?" He asked softly.

"It hurts to talk. Bring me a laptop and I'll type everything in an essay..." Said L with effort. "I also think that you should prepare my successors. Some things have changed, and I don't know how much longer I'll be around."

Watari regarded him with a sad expression. So it was coming to this...

...

Roger Ruvie, interim director of Wammy's House emerged from his office and headed towards the main common room, where most of the children were gathered in their post-dinner activities. There, among the many promising geniuses, he found his targets. He approached a group of girls playing cards on the floor and addressed a small, dark-skinned girl with honey brown eyes, and thick ringlets spilling out of her pig tails. The girl looked to be about 9 and carried a teddy bear close to her chest. She quietly followed Roger as he walked over to a group of boys sitting in front of the television. One in particular, a boy that looked to be 13 with messy black hair and green eyes sat on the side, playing a video game on his laptop. Roger called his name and the boy quickly looked up, surprised to see Roger standing there for it was well known that Roger would rather wax his legs than spend time in the common room with the children.

Roger motioned for the boy to follow him, and he quickly closed his laptop and got on his feet. Once they arrived at the main office, the two children were surprised to see Wammy, and not Roger, sitting at the big desk.

"Hello, there" Said Watari pleasantly to the weary children. "I'm Quillish Wammy, you may just call me Quillish. Or Wammy, whichever you prefer." He said, smiling.

The children gave him weak smiles, and Watari could see the look of uncertainty painted clearly on their faces.

"This is Quinn." Said Roger, gesturing to the boy. "And this is Casey." He said looking at the small girl. "...They both scored highest overall in their respective disciplines. Their skills even transcend their age groups and they often take classes with the older kids. I suppose that when the time comes they will be referred to as Q and C respectively."

The children swallowed nervously. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they'd just been chosen to be L's replacement. Neither child said anything on the matter, and there was a long pause as they stared blankly at Watari, like deer in headlights.

Quinn's green eyes fixated on an object on Roger's, or rather Watari's desk. He'd always known that he was smart, but he never considered himself the forerunner to be the next L. Sure, he'd expressed interest in becoming a detective once, but that was a long time ago, and even then he was only half-serious about it. He never fathomed that the title and responsibility would be thrown upon him like this.

Likewise, Casey was petrified, holding on to her teddy bear for dear life. She really wanted to give back to Wammy's House for everything they'd done for her, but she was only 9 and knew nothing about detective work. Only moments ago, she was playing cards with her friends, and now she was expected to replace the world's greatest detective? The thought made her head spin, and she found herself wishing that she'd paid more attention in class.

Watari observed them closely and sighed, realizing that this was going to be more difficult than he'd anticipated. These children may be extremely intelligent, but they were no L, and what's more, they were scared...

-_elsewhere-_

Panda eyes stared at her, and she stared back at them with a frown. Misa sat in front of Mello's crib, watching the soft rise and fall of his chest as he slept. Now was her chance.

'_Gotcha' _She slipped her arm over the railing and grabbed the panda bear plushy that was tucked under her son's arm.

She started to pull it away, very gently so as to not disturb its owner, but just before she could pull it free, her son woke and renewed his grip on the bear. Misa paused, watching him as he watched her. Once more, she tried to pull the bear out but the infant had a vice grip on it. Finally, she gave a sharp tug, yanking it out of the infant's hands.

'_Success!' _She celebrated as she threw the bear inside the closet, out of sight. Immediately, her son's arms reached up for it, and his whimpers grew louder and louder. She hushed him and sang to him in an attempt to appease him. She tried to get him another plushy, a dog, but he simply pushed it away and cried harder. He wanted the panda. The stupid panda. She sighed in defeat and went to the closet to get the panda bear plushy.

She fetched it dutifully and felt a sadness when she looked at its plastic, black-rimmed eyes. For a second she let herself remember him, the one who stole her heart and never gave it back...the man who made her the happiest, and the saddest, but also gave her the best thing in the world. Absently, she touched the bear's face and hugged it.

"Did you just take that from your kid so you could cuddle with it? If you want one so badly you should get your own..." Said a male voice, startling her.

Misa turned toward the door to find Gevanni standing there, with Halle at his side. The older blonde snickered and then burst out laughing at seeing Misa almost make out with that stuffed bear. Misa turned red and threw her a dirty look, realizing how stupid she must look holding the panda as if it were her lover. She couldn't believe that she got carried away with some dumb toy.

"I was just going to give it to him!" Said Misa, marching to the baby's crib and depositing the panda in her son's arms.

"Sure you were...after you smooched with it first!" Said Halle.

"I was NOT going to smooch with it!" She grouched before turning to Gevanni. "Have you been able to get in contact with L?" She asked him.

Gevanni shook his head. "Not at all. The transceiver is dead and so is the phone. It's like he disappeared..."

Misa pursed her lips with concern. For months she'd heard no news about L, which was extremely unusual given his tenacity, and what's more, she hadn't been able to contact Watari either. Her first thought was that something was wrong. Was L hurt because of her? The idea made her skin crawl and she prayed it wasn't so. Her second thought was that maybe he'd given up and forgotten about her. She didn't like that option either, but it was the most probable. After all, how long can you chase someone before getting tired and moving on?

She turned to look at her son with a dejected look. All she'd wanted was an apology...a measly "I'm sorry." Looking at her son, a piece of him, it suddenly seemed silly to her, so trivial, like a star in the distant sky. Maybe she was missing him, or maybe it was because she was worried about Mihael missing him too, but she got the urge to find him, even if only to make sure that he was alright.

"Da-da-da-da" Babbled Mello in his endless baby-language. Halle gasped and rused over to the crib.

"See? I told you. He's starting to form words! At this rate he'll be saying 'dad' pretty soon." Said Halle, not realizing the impact of her words on Misa.

Of course she'd heard her son string that syllable before...that dreaded syllable that with a simple flick of the tongue can turn into the word that describes the man who wasn't there to hear them. Dad. It was awful. She'd tried to teach him 'mama' instead but it was futile. He was already stuck on that word, and no matter what she tried with him, Mello seemed to end up doing the opposite.

"What am I going to do with you?" Said Misa softly. "Why can't you say 'mom' instead? At least I'm right here..."

"I hope this doesn't sound insensitive but have you considered dating other men?" Asked Gevanni.

Misa looked at him surprised and Halle threw him a warning glance.

"I mean, I know it may seem abrupt, but if you're determined to never see L again, and you're worried about him missing a father...well, he's a baby and he won't know the difference between his father and some other guy. And if things go well, maybe you won't ever have to tell him the truth." Said Gevanni.

"Stephen, how could you even suggest something like that?" Said Halle.

Misa was quiet. Date other men? She did have a lot of suitors and guys asked her out almost on a daily basis, so finding a surrogate father for Mihael wouldn't be difficult. Yet, her stomach churned at the idea of being touched by another man, and so she shirked away from it.

-_Days later-_

L was walking the grounds around Wammy's House, when he saw Moresly exiting the dining room to have a smoke. The young doctor's jagged hair bounced slightly with each springy step he took and his lab coat swished behind him as he walked out in the direction of the pond. L struggled to catch up to him with his shortness of breath.

"Moresly." He said, walking behind the other man.

"Oh hello!" Said the brunette cheerfully, turning toward him. "What the fuck do you want?" He asked, less pleasantly.

"I wanted to tell you that your Experimental Physiology research on the function of the prefrontal lobes of the brain was quite interesting." Said L.

"Oh yeah?" Said Moresly, skeptical. "...like you read it all."

"I did."

Moresly snorted and lit his cigarette.

"I was particularly interested in your understanding of procedures involving the thalamus and hippocampus. I was wondering if you'd ever performed such procedures on human subjects." Said L, looking at him intently.

Moresly regarded the detective curiously. "What are you getting at?"

"Well, have you?" Asked the detective.

"Of course not. Lobotomies have been deemed highly unethical since the late 1950's." He said with a hint of irritation. "Everybody knows that. Idiot."

"Would you want to?"

"Huh?"

"Would you be interested in performing a specialized lobotomy on a live human subject?"

Moresly's face contorted into a frown for the first time, his mind racing with the endless implications of L's question.

"Specialized how?"

"Sever connections to the thalamus and the hippocampus to erase long-term memory and destroy the ability to feel emotions. Specifically, ridding someone of feelings of pain, though, I understand that may do away with all feelings altogether." Said L.

'_A specialized lobotomy to rid someone of pain and memories? How curious...I like the sound of that.'_ Thought the doctor. He smiled.

"There's just one problem with that. Whose brain?" Asked Moresly.

"Mine." Said L.

"Y-yours?" Said Moresly nearly choking on his cigarette.

"Yes, my brain."

'_Is he toying with me? He must be! Why on earth would he ever risk his most valued gift?...' _Thought the doctor. Finally, he giggled and threw his cigarette out. "Come by the lab later. We'll talk." He said before taking off.

...

Watari sat in the main office deep in thought. Something was very wrong with L. Ever since his imprisonment in Ferraro's estate and the deal he had to make with him, he hadn't been himself. He barely ate anything, sweet or not, and he spent his time reading or sulking, or walking aimlessly around the orphanage. Watari never wanted things to get this bad, and if he'd known it would come to this, he would have told L Misa's whereabouts a long time ago. Guilt was eating away at him and he really wished that he could call Misa and put an end to this. Unfortunately, Ferraro's agents took the satellite phone from him and they were twin phones, only able to communicate with each other.

"What a mess..." Whispered Watari to no one.

Then there was the issue of Quinn and Casey. If there was something he'd learned throughout the years at L's side is that not just anyone could do what L did. Intelligence aside, whomever succeeded him needed to be mentally strong, capable of handling themselves in the face of grotesqueness, and above all, they must enjoy solving the puzzles and mysteries. That was the key to staying alive under such pressure. Those who didn't meet those criteria usually ended up crazy, or worse. Memories of A invaded his mind...A, L's predecessor who shot himself after realizing how miserable he was. Then there was B, or Backup, L's most promising successor. He too went mad, became a serial killer and set himself on fire, only to then be captured by L himself. After that came K, another promising L successor, and no one knows what became of her as she went missing. Probably killed herself just like A.

In short, Watari suspected that Quinn and Casey lacked the mental fortitude to become the next L. Yet, there was one last thing he could try before writing them off. His thoughts were interrupted by L coming into the office.

"You wanted to see me." Said L, languidly perching himself on a chair across from the old man.

"Yes, it's about your successors." Said Watari."...you may have some work to do if you plan to retire soon."

...

After about half an hour of conversing with Watari, L left the main office to meet with Moresly. He recalled the corridors of Wammy's House perfectly as he navigated them on his way to the labs. Some of the children he passed gave him strange looks, having never seen him there before. It had been such a long time since L had been to Wammy's House, he doubted anyone besides the senior staff would remember or recognize him.

He arrived at the cold, sterile, medical sector of the orphanage and quickly found Moresly's lab. The door swung open and Moresly appeared behind it, looking chipper as always.

"Hey. I saw you through the cameras. Come in and take a seat." Said the doctor. L stepped inside but instead of sitting, he walked around, inspecting the contents of the medicine cabinets.

"This is an awful lot of narcotics. I'm surprised they let you keep them here." Said L, staring at a particular cabinet.

Moresly snorted. "Do you even know who I am? I happen to be one of the world's leading immunologists and I use them for research purposes." He said.

L opened the cabinet. It wasn't even locked. '_Keep fooling yourself Ethan...' _He thought, as he looked at each vial.

"I knew that." Said the detective. "After all, how often do children get injured so severely that they need to be given Morphine..." L commented, turning over a bottle of clear liquid. "Which of these do you use?" He said, taking Moresly aback for a split second.

"Very good! You got me. I'd forgotten how perceptive you are." Said Morsely without a hint of malice this time. "I should have expected you to notice, being so clever and all, just like in the old days. Oh yes, I remember back when the annual aptitude scores were posted outside the main office. No one's real names were ever listed on the charts but I always knew who was who. Especially that lonely little dot at the very high end of the distribution, far above everyone else. You were pushing 200 back then." He sighed. "I was always a measly 15 points behind you. I bet that would still hold true today..."

L regarded him with a bored expression. He didn't come here to reminisce about the past.

"Oh, and if you must know, I don't use any of that. I make my own." He said, grinning innocently. "You should try it some time, it's quite good. It might even make you walk with proper posture..." He chuckled. "...but anyway, I digress. About your lobotomy..."

L finally perched himself on the seat across Moresly's desk.

"..I gave it some thought and by that I mean I dissected all the risks and scenarios revolving this little experiment. These range anywhere from you dying a miserable idiot to me being vilified and shunned by the medical community, but I'm sure you already knew all of this." Said Moresly, making grand gestures.

"Right, I did. Go on."

"Yes, so all that mish-mosh aside, playing inside your brain with sharp objects sounds hella fun and I'm in!" He announced.

L nodded his head, satisfied.

"But" Said the doctor. "There's something very intriguing about this petition. What happened to you that you're so keen to do this to yourself? I mean, it's plainly obvious that this is like a scientific cure for suffering or heartache. Tell me, who hurt you?" He said, in a patronizing tone.

For a moment, L thought about Misa writhing in his arms, professing her love for him. Then just as quickly, he pushed the memory away. He stayed quiet, refusing to humor Moresly with his personal life. The doctor looked at him expectantly, as if waiting on some juicy gossip, but he was rewarded with more silence.

"Boo! I guess you're not going to tell me...fine. I suppose I should also tell you that the likelihood of me succeeding in this endeavor is about 50-50."

L looked up for a second. "Actually, I would say it's more 60-40 in my favor. I have faith in you." He said.

"Well thank you. That means a lot coming from you...also, I must ask. What if, hypothetically, I was to feel a little vengeful during the procedure and decide to scramble your brains like battered eggs?" Asked Moresly with a wicked smile. "You're placing an awful lot of trust in me..."

"If you feel so inclined, then go ahead. It's not like I'll know. I'll die and you'll tarnish your precious reputation." Said L without a hint of remorse.

Moresly just looked at him and smiled. He definitely did not expect this from the detective, and he couldn't help but wonder what was going through his mind at this time. Regardless, this was too good of an opportunity to pass up. He would do it. Moresly stood up and shook L's hand to seal the deal.

"Great. Now that I have your cooperation, don't mind if I grab these..." Said L as he got off the chair and walked right over Moresly's desk to the medicine cabinet containing all the narcotics.

"Hey! I need those" Protested Moresly as L began to raid the cabinet.

"Until I get my surgery, I'll need to be as comfortable as possible, so I'll be taking some of these. Thank you for your generosity, Ethan, though, a brain for a few painkillers is hardly a fair trade." Said L.

"Oh, alright, but just leave me some!"

And just like that, L exited the lab.


	34. Liminality

**Writer's Note: **_Hi readers welcome back to another chapter of End Games, the next chapter will probably be out within this week (heck maybe within the next couple of days!). Once again, thank you all so so much for your honest comments. You guys are awesome and you tickle me pink every time you write to me, so don't forget to review at the end to let me know what you think! Also, I just want to say that the moment of truth is coming soon...I'll leave that open to interpretation haha.  
_

* * *

It was late evening when Casey took her teddy bear and left the classroom where she and Quinn were studying to become L's replacements. The small girl walked out onto the chilly autumn field that surrounded Wammy's House and hugged her teddy bear close as she scanned the area for their teacher. She spotted his slouched back, raven head, and signature white shirt and jeans by the pond, where he sat looking at the sunset. She went over to him. At first L did not acknowledge the girl as he continued to stare off into the distance. Casey walked closer to him and noticed a thin, wispy stream of smoke rising from his hands.

"You're gonna die you know..." Said the small girl, fixing her honey eyes on the the cigarette in L's hand. The raven-haired man looked at her as he held the thin roll between his index finger and thumb.

"Everyone dies, Casey." He said simply. "One cigarette isn't going to kill me, you know that."

"It's not just that, you take other things too, things that can kill. I've seen Dr. Moresly give them to you. He doesn't have your best interest in mind." She said from where she stood.

L glanced at her and saw concern written on her face. He flexed his toes on the bench and looked at the ground, thinking of how Casey's sentiment was wasted on him. It was nice of her to worry, but as things were, L himself didn't have his own best interest in mind.

"You don't like Dr. Moresly?" Asked L.

The girl shook her head. "If I tell you the truth about what I think of him, will you tell him?"

"No."

The girl took a seat on the bench next to the detective. "There's something off about him...I think he's too nice to everyone and he smiles too much, which makes me think that he's hiding something."

'_Very perceptive...'_ L noted.

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but he just seems fake, like he's putting on a show for everyone all the time." Said the girl.

L neither confirmed nor denied her statement. He would have liked to praise her observation skills, but he simply stayed quiet and looked out into the distance. The sun was just over the horizon, the same as when he and Misa talked of love on top of that Ferris Wheel ages ago. He caught himself thinking about her again and berated himself for it.

'_Now even sunsets belong to her, how inconvenient...' _He thought as he took a puff of the cigarette. It was truly a detestable thing, but he found that he'd stopped caring.

Moments passed and a cold breeze assaulted them, rustling the leaves off the tress and whisking them away. Its cool sting was like a sharp reminder that winter was just around the corner. L didn't react to it but he noticed that the Casey was shivering. She really shouldn't have gone out there without a jacket.

"Why are you out here Casey? I gave you plenty of mathematical theorems to prove, have you done them all?" He asked.

The girl looked at her teddy bear, and plucked at its ears with a frown.

"I'm stuck." She said meekly.

"Stuck already?" Asked L, not entirely surprised.

"Yes, and Quinn is stuck on that computer program you gave him, though he's too proud to admit it." She said.

L sighed. What was he going to do with those two? Soon he would have his lobotomy and if something were to happen to him, he needed Quinn and Casey to take over as L, but they had a long way to go...

With one last glance at the sunset, he threw his cigarette in the pond and stood up to go back inside.

-_inside the classroom-_

Quinn released a frustrated sigh. He'd been looking at the same line of code on his laptop for over an hour with no results. No matter what he did to that program, it always locked itself, asking for the same 25-character password that he did not know, and if he made even one mistake, whatever valuable data L had for him inside that program would get erased. The only way around it was to magically uncover the 25-character password that would unlock the data, but of course, only L knew it, and although he'd given Quinn the option to try and trick him into revealing the password, the young pupil knew better than to even attempt it.

Quinn glanced at L with a pleading look, hoping to receive so much as a hint from his teacher. The detective saw the look, but remained still on a chair at the far end of the classroom, watching him struggle.

"This is really hard..." Said the boy finally, shaking his head. "I've tried everything...maybe I'm just too young and inexperienced to know how to crack something as delicate as this."

"Your age is inconsequential, Quinn." Said L with that unreadable expression of his. "If you don't believe me, I'll tell you right now that I created that program when I was 11, two full years younger than you." He said.

Quinn groaned. "Then maybe the problem is the teacher..." He muttered.

"No, that's not it either. Externalizing the issue is only going to complicate things, but if it's any help to you, I never said that you couldn't work together on these puzzles." Said L calmly.

Quinn looked at L with tired eyes. Casey looked up from her page full of mathematical symbols and without being asked, walked over to him.

"Let me see" She said, peering over Quinn's shoulders.

"Fine." Said the boy grudgingly.

The small girl placed her teddy bear on her lap as she took a seat next to him and studied the neat and deceptively simple program.

"Hmm...did you try a key logger?" She asked.

"How? I only have one chance at the password so unless I can get it on the first try, it's useless to even go that route." He said impatiently.

"Okay...how about breaking it? If the only thing that's keeping you from succeeding is the password, what if you broke that part of the program? Like a malfunction or a virus-"

"Casey, I think you should just stick to doing equations, I don't think you know what you're talking about." Snapped Quinn. The small girl was taken aback by his small outburst.

"Hey, I'm only trying to help you! You don't have to be such a jerk you know." She said.

"What did you call me?"

"A jerk!" Said Casey, getting angry.

"Fine call me a jerk, but at least I'm not useless like you! You don't do anything challenging, ever!" Yelled Quinn, standing up from his chair and towering over Casey.

"I don't do anything?! Do you even know the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning_?_ Huh? I didn't think so, asshole!" Yelled the small girl as she got up in defiance.

L watched from the sidelines as his successors began to hurl insults at each other, literally reduced to bickering children. He sat there counting the seconds before he interfered. He would give them one more minute of this shouting match. As more insults flew, Quinn grabbed Casey's teddy bear and the small girl fell silent at once. Quinn raised the bear above his head and she jumped up, desperately trying to take it from him.

"Why do you even carry this stupid thing everywhere?" Said the boy, holding the bear hostage.

"That's none of your business, just give it back you thief!"

That was the wrong thing to say because Quinn grabbed the stuffed bear and pulled at its head forcefully. With a "_rip!"_ sound, he managed to partially tear it off. Casey shrieked and pounded on Quinn's chest, shouting and calling him a monster. Then just like that, the semi-decapitated bear was out of Quinn's hands. The two pupils looked at each other and then at their teacher as he held the bear in that delicate manner of his.

"That's quite enough, both of you." Said L, displeased. "You're both dismissed...and Quinn, don't come back until you're ready to work." He said with finality.

The two children shrunk back in shame and Quinn alone nodded, his eyes trained on the floor. He began to quietly pack his things as Casey stared at the bear in L's hand, with its head dangling by mere fibers. She reached out for it and her vision clouded as teardrops welled in her honey brown eyes. L gave her the bear and she took it gingerly as though it were a baby.

"My bear..." She whispered, trying to piece it together. The stuffing came out of it and she whimpered.

As if there wasn't enough tension in the room, Moresly walked into the classroom with his springy gait. He made a beeline for L but stopped a second when he saw the two morose children.

"Ooh, such long faces on these children. What happened here?" Said Moresly.

"Hi Dr. Moresly." Said Quinn downcast.

Casey didn't say anything, but stood there hugging what was left of her teddy bear.

"Hi to you too, Quinn." He said, smiling, before leaning down toward the teary-eyed Casey. "Oh my, that looks like a very serious injury" He said, pointing to the bear.

Casey eyed him suspiciously which only made the doctor smile more.

"If you want, you can bring him by the lab later and I'll fix him right up. I'm very good at suturing wounds!"

The small girl sniffled back her tears and muttered a quick "thank you." Quietly, she waited until Quinn was gone before walking out, leaving the two men by themselves. Once they were gone, Moresly faced L.

"So please tell me those two aren't your successors!" Said the doctor. L nodded and said they were.

"Oh wow! We're fucked!" He guffawed. " What are they, 40, no, more like 50 points below you? Is that really the best that Wammy's House could produce?" He sighed. "This place is going downhill in flames then!"

L gave him a deprecating look, annoyed with the way Moresly reduced Quinn and Casey to a pair of numbers.

"...but anyhow, speaking of going down in flames..." The eager brunette continued "you know I heard a rumor that Wammy's House was under threat of being burnt down by some evil organization?" He said with wonderment. "Is that true?"

"It's true." Said the detective, omitting the part about the "evil organization" being Interpol. The last thing he wanted was to give Moresly more reason to ask questions.

"Oh, so that's why you came back, isn't it? You're here to save us! Oh what a hero, I had you pegged wrong all this time." He said merrily.

"Must you always sound so patronizing?" Said L, burying his hands in his pockets.

"Ah, sorry, it must be a habit" Said Moresly smiling.

"Is that all you came here to say?"

"Actually, I came here to tell you that in a week's time I will be leaving to Vienna for a symposium on pathology and immunology and I won't be able to perform your surgery until after I return. That will be in two week's time. Until then feel free to alleviate your inner turmoils any way you see fit." He said, holding out the keys to his lab. "I'm trusting you with these, but whatever you do, just don't fuck shit up, don't die, and don't take everything in my special cabinet." He said.

L rolled his eyes, feeling like he was being lectured as if he were a child. Without a word, he took the keys from Moresly and put them in his pocket.

...

-_The next day-_

Watari walked out to find L in his new favorite spot by the pond, smoking a cigarette.

'_Well that's new' _He thought, frowning. He walked over and stood next to the detective who was resting his hands on his knees as he sat on the bench.

"Hello" Said Watari, looking at him with concern. "Should you be doing that with your lung not fully healed?"

L shrugged and looked at the cigarette. "Moresly didn't recommend it but he didn't forbid it either."

"I see. You're not instructing Quinn and Casey today?" Asked the old man. He'd seen the two youths acting strange and distant with each other at dinner last night. He wondered if something happened during their lesson with L to cause such behavior.

"Not today..." Said L, rolling the cigarette in between his thumb and forefinger. "Yesterday those two became frustrated with each other and had a fight, which I failed to stop, and now they're not on speaking terms. Also I think I may have scared them away."

"Oh, so that's what happened" Said the old man thoughtfully. "It's alright, I don't think you scared them away, they were scared long before they even met you." Said the old man smiling.

"Is that so?" Said L. '_Well that explains some things...' _Thought the detective, nibbling on his free thumb. After a minute or so, L's shoulders slumped and he sighed.

"Is something the matter?" Inquired Watari.

"Maybe this was supposed to happen, Wammy. It appears that I'm not good with children" Said L, giving the old man a half-smile. "Maybe it was for the best..."

Watari put his hand on his adoptive son's shoulders and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"It's fine. It just takes practice and patience, you'll get better at it with time." Said Watari, knowing that L wasn't just talking about Quinn and Casey.

Watari stood by L for a few more minutes before going back inside where it was warm. The wind was starting to pick up and it was getting uncomfortably chilly, even for L. The detective was about to finish up the cigarette and go inside when he heard small footsteps behind him. He turned to see Casey standing there, with her teddy bear, only this time its head was stitched back in place with only a few puffs of errant stuffing protruding from its neck.

"Hi" She said shyly.

"Hi" Said L, somewhat surprised to see her there.

"Are you free right now?" Asked Casey. L nodded in response and the girl tentatively sat next to him on the bench.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry about my behavior yesterday. I know it was really rude of me to call Quinn those names and to have freaked out the way I did." She said looking down at the bear on her lap. "And I also wanted to tell you a secret. It'll explain why I got so angry when Quinn ripped my bear open...here-" She said, holding the bear out for him to take.

L took it with his free hand and examined the bear closely for the first time. As he dangled the stuffed animal in front of his face, he noticed a rather large seam on its side. Reaching inside the seam, he pulled out a letter, and in the letter was a photograph of a man and a woman smiling with two children, a boy and a girl, in their arms. It was plainly obvious that Casey was the girl and those were her parents and brother. He stared at the photograph for a while longer, noting the happy smiles on their faces, wondering if he could ever take a picture like that with Misa and his son. Without reading the neatly scripted letter, he placed the contents back inside the bear's body and handed it back to its owner. She took it gingerly and traced its ears absently.

"My parents ran into trouble with some bad people. They said it was too dangerous for me and my brother to stay with them so they had to let us go..." Said the girl sadly. "This teddy bear was my favorite present from them. The last time I saw them, they gave it to me with that letter, promising that they would find me as soon as they can...anyway, I know it's silly to carry these things with me because I could lose them or something could happen to them. If something did happen to this bear, I would be sad..." She said, gently plucking its ears. "...but I'd get over it, even if it were to get burnt to ashes. You want to know why?"

L looked at her curiously and nodded.

"Because the people I love are not in this bear, they're here-" She pointed to her heart "-and here-" She said, pointing to her head. She was referring to her feelings and memories of those she loves...the very things that he was trying to get rid of...

"I feel them and remember them every day. Eventually I'll have to get rid of this old thing, but it won't matter because by then I know I will have found them. It doesn't matter how long it takes me, or how much I have to wait, or how many places I have to search, I know I will find them." She said smiling.

L sat there, eyes wide, lost in though. Ever since Ferraro took hold of his life and his family, all he'd wanted to do was forget it all- the whole thing with Misa, his son, and Ferraro. In all his life, he'd never experienced such a loss and he wanted nothing more than to be over it already, because as it turned out, he did not cope well with emotional pain. He thought he lucked out when he found Moresly, an accomplished doctor crazy enough to agree to a lobotomy, and skilled enough to do it right. But now, listening to Casey, he realized that what he wanted more than his own freedom and painless oblivion, was to have them back. He wanted his son and Misa, and even though the thoughts and memories were haunting, they could also be empowering, just like Casey's memories were empowering to her. He wanted to have his family back. Against all odds a loophole would eventually open up in Ferraro's plan; he was patient, he could wait...he may have lost a few major battles, but he hadn't yet lost the war and it was still soon to call it quits.

He felt something hot on his finger and noticed that he'd completely forgotten about the cigarette which was now disintegrating in his hand. He immediately threw the cigarette into the pond without a care for it.

"Casey..."

"Hm?" Said the girl looking at him.

"You're a genius." He said, earning a look of pure puzzlement from her. Without any explanation, L stood up and patted the girl on the head. Then he walked away.

"Hey! Wait! Where are you going?" She said following him.

"I'm really hungry and I'm kind of craving shortcake so I'm heading to the cafeteria." Said L.

"But I'm not done yet" Said the girl.

"Well you can talk and walk at the same time." He said, motioning for the girl to follow him.

When they reached the cafeteria, L completely bypassed the line and went right into the kitchen, earning himself strange looks from the other children there, including Casey.

"Well? Are you coming?" He asked, poking his head out the kitchen door. The small girl fell in step with him at once. In the kitchen, the cooks already knew who he was and they even had his favorite pastries prepared in a refrigerated display. Casey stared at all the delicious sweets as L sampled each one, finally settling on a large strawberry shortcake with mousse. Casey's mouth was practically watering at the thing. L grabbed the entire cake and walked out, thanking the kitchen staff for all their "fine work."

"You're gonna eat that whole thing by yourself?!" Said the girl.

"Not the whole thing, you can help yourself to some too." He said, sitting down in one of the more secluded tables.

"OK! But this is still a really big cake, I can't believe you'd eat this much."

"Oh, I've been rather depressed lately and I haven't eaten much sweets. It's time to make up for lost time-" He said digging into the cake with a knife and dropping a huge piece on his plate. His eyes shone with adoration at the mountain of pastry on his plate, and, like a ravenous wolf he began to ingest spoonfuls of cake, feeling like he wanted more with each bite.

'_Ah this is what I've been craving...'_ He thought as he eagerly munched on a strawberry covered in mousse. The consistency of the pastry was just right, not too dense but not too sparse and it had the perfect amount of sugar and marmalade and fruits. He'd forgotten how good the chefs here were. Meanwhile, Casey eyed her teacher from a whole new perspective. She had never seen him like this and she never imagined he could be such a glutton for sweets. It was as though she were seeing him for the first time, yet it felt right for him.

"Why were you so depressed?" She asked suddenly. L continued to eat the cake. While he didn't feel like breaching the topic with Casey, he wasn't repulsed by the memories that popped into his head either...maybe the girl was right and those memories were something to be cherished and guarded, not to be done away with. He embraced them silently.

She frowned at his silence. "Please! I told you one of my deepest darkest secrets! You should tell me one of yours" She insisted

"Is that how it works?" Asked L through a mouthful of cake.

"Yes! It's part of the social practice of give-and-take" She said. L didn't care for social practices, but he was feeling much better as a result of their conversation so maybe he should grant her request.

"Very well. I was depressed because I lost someone very important to me, and also, my work as a detective was compromised by some unsavory people." He told her, impaling a strawberry with his fork. "The person I lost left me because I treated her poorly and because I was too proud to admit that I wronged her. As for the damper on detective work, the only thing I'll say is that I'm not allowed to take on cases out of pure interest anymore. Frankly I don't know if I care to do it under such condition, and that's where you and Quinn come in to replace me." He said, taking another large bite of cake. "This shortcake really is delicious." He commented.

"That is sad...I would be upset too if that happened to me." She said, nibbling on a strawberry. "So this girl that left you, was she your girlfriend?"

L nodded, never taking his eyes off his plate.

"That's so sweet. I never thought you had a girlfriend...she must be really smart." Said the girl, sub-dividing her piece of cake into smaller chunks.

L licked mousse off his lips and looked up thoughtfully. "She's smart but not in the same way that you and I, or anyone else here, is smart. She's like her own brand of wit, completely unpredictable, to the point where even she probably doesn't realize what she's capable of accomplishing." He paused to gulp down another strawberry. " For example, she invented some terrible ideas and plots while we were together, it drove me quite mad sometimes, but the truth is, without her I wouldn't have been able to catch Kira and..." He trailed off thinking of how to word the next part. "...and she's probably the only person who I would ever admit defeat to."

The girl was in awe for a moment. "That's incredible. I'd love to meet her some day!" Said Casey.

L sighed and put his fork down. "I would like that very much but I don't know when I'll see her again, if she even wants to see me again."

"That's terrible. You should go after her anyway and if you explain to her how you feel, I'm sure she'll come around!" She said, frowning.

L couldn't help but be amused by the fact that he was suddenly getting relationship advice from a 9-year-old girl. He played around with a strawberry on his plate until finally he pushed it away, satisfied for now. He stood up from the chair, ready to leave.

"Well Casey, I suppose I'll see you tomorrow for your lessons?"

"Yes. Oh I almost forgot to tell you! Quinn apologized to me last night. He was the one who mended my teddy bear actually, and he also asked me to tell you that he'll be at lessons tomorrow and that he'll apologize to you personally then." She said.

"Sounds good. Thank you for relaying the message and I will see you both tomorrow." Said L, taking off.

...

The following day, Quinn showed up to his lesson with L early, ready to work, and eager to apologize. He was surprised to find the raven-haired detective sitting at the front of the classroom, poking at a tray full of assorted chocolates.

"Care for some chocolates? I find they're very helpful treats for the mind." He said, picking one up and popping it in his mouth.

"Eh, sure" Said Quinn.

"Oh and by the way, regarding that programming challenge I gave you...let's just say that Casey's suggestion of a virus wasn't entirely off the mark..." Said L to the boy.

Quinn stood shocked for a moment, unsure of whether he was more surprised by the chocolate thing, or by the fact that his teacher had actually given him a useful hint. Casey arrived just then and smiled at both of them smugly.

"See Quinn? I told you a computer virus would work!" Said Casey, teasing him.

"Yeah, yeah...I'll code something up, give me a break here..." Said Quinn, taking a seat.

Casey walked over and took the seat next to him. "Oh and thank you for looking over my induction proof the other night and for stitching up my bear. It held up pretty well." Said the girl, holding out the bear for him to see.

"No problem, it was the least I could do..." Said Quinn, prying open his laptop.

L watched them, feeling something akin to relief and pride at seeing that his two successors were actually collaborating now. A promising idea began to form in his head. '_What if there were multiple Ls? An__ L group acting as one entity would be better than a single person acting alone, or two individuals acting independently of each other...' _He thought, nibbling his finger as the idea took shape in his mind. '_If both people work well together as one L entity, that would make them harder to catch, especially if the rest of the world is under the assumption that L is just one person...interesting. That could work.'_

He grabbed another chocolate from the tray and dropped it into his mouth. He would revisit his idea in the future, but for now, he had more pressing matters sitting right in front of him.

* * *

**Writer's Note:**_ Hey everyone (again)! So I know there was no Misa in this chapter, but there will be a lot of her in the next one. I think this is the last of my L-only chapters. There's only one more thing coming up that's kind of L-heavy. Other than that I think we're almost at the point where their paths are gonna collide again through some twist of fate straight out of my imagination. I'm oh-so-excited for the next chapter though. *squeals*_

_On a completely separate issue, in case anyone wondered what L did with the death notes, he burnt Ryuk's death note (aka Light's original death note). So Ryuk is gone. HOWEVER, he has hidden Misa's death note (in a clever way that will not be revealed for now) because if he burnt that one, then she would lose her memories again and he didn't want to do that to her. So this is the reason that Misa still remembers everything. Right now, Rem is wandering the human world, watching Misa from afar and she doesn't miss the Shinigami realm at all. __I wanted to address all of this in the story but I couldn't find a good place to fit it, and it's not that important right now anyway, so I figured I'd just mention it here. Till next time (which will be very soon)!_


	35. Paragon I

**Writer's Note: **_Hello faithful readers! These comments you guys leave me are so adorable, I can't even...you guys make me blush every time but anyways, thank you for sticking it out this far, damn this story is long lol. I swear I never intended it to be this lengthy but ideas unfurled in my head and well, here we are. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Please read and review because I'm curious to know what you guys think. Thanks :)_

* * *

In that moment, she was the very embodiment of beauty. Flashing camera lights clicked sporadically, casting a silver glow on her creamy skin, which was covered in a subtle shimmer. Clad in nothing but a sequinned silver bra, feathery silver panties with sequin accents, and matching wings, Misa looked like a graceful angel. Beneath the sea of multi-colored flashes, she felt as though nothing else existed and that once again, she could be her unmitigated, free, and expressive self. This was her moment, and hers alone. With carefully calculated movements, Misa elongated herself, arched her back, and wove her hands through her long blonde hair while striking a delicate pose. As more cameras flashed, she tossed her waist-long hair to the side, over her firm, round breasts. She reveled in all the attention while running her hands over her slender waist, down the curve that met her hips, in a slow, sensual tease.

"Beautiful Misa, just gorgeous!" Praised the director's voice from behind the wall of cameras. "One more..."

Misa gave him a playful half-smile. Her lips were their natural pink color, with just a bit of gloss added to make them appear moist and inviting. Her hazel eyes danced with edgy confidence as she relished this moment, when she could be herself, surrounded by beauty, embodying beauty. Long gone were the days when all she did was cutesy-type photo shoots. She was a new woman now, three years in the making since she left L behind and took on the role of single mother and the terrible burden of being a detective for the ICPO.

"I lied, two more...no, three more...wow I love that pose!..." Said the director, in awe. Misa smiled even more. After ten more minutes of photographing her, the shoot finally came to a close.

"...and that's a wrap!" Declared the finely dressed director, beaming at the 23-year-old starlet. "Misa, you my dear, are a star." He declared getting up from his seat to hug the model. She blushed at his praise. Florence was a renowned director and photographer with great influence in the entertainment industry and an even greater sense of fashion, which showed in his pristine clothing and appearance. He worked exclusively with big name brands, and his eye for talent was unmatched, which is how he spotted Misa. However, what the young model liked most about Florence, was that he was very professional, never lewd or disrespectful, and unmistakably gay. She trusted him so much that if there was one man in the modeling world with whom she would feel comfortable doing a nude photo shoot with, it was Florence.

"Thank you, Florence, that means a lot coming from you" She said, bowing politely. Florence smiled, revealing pearly white teeth.

"Oh you don't have to bow darling." He said, waving her off.

"Sorry...old habit" She said, chuckling.

A stage hand came up to Misa with a silk robe to cover her. Meanwhile a whole entourage of people swarmed the area, helping her with her props and breaking down the set.

"Thank you for your hard work everyone!" Said Florence before turning back to Misa. "I can't wait for these to make next month's Victoria's Secret catalogs. The world is going to be taken by storm over your return to modeling after your three-year hiatus. I can see the headlines already, saying 'Misa Amane, an angel in photographs and in real life too!'" He said with a flair that was so him.

Misa blushed again. "Oh Florence, only you would come up with that headline!" She said, laughing.

"You know it. And that's not all, love. Guess what?" He asked, not really expecting her to guess. "You are going to be on my spring collection runway debut, and everyone who's anyone in the entertainment industry is going to be there to see it!" He announced excitedly. Misa's eyes lit up at the news and it took her a moment to fully digest what he was telling her. Her, on a runway? For years Misa yearned to do a live fashion show, but she'd always been too short to be a runway model. In photos she could make herself appear long and tall but in live shows, her modest height was painfully obvious, and a hindrance...but not anymore!

She squealed with delight and threw her arms around the director.

"Oh my gosh! Thank you that's amazing, I promise I won't let you down, I'll be the best ever!" She said all in one breath. "Give me a pair of 10-inch heels, if you have to, I'll rock them!" She said enthusiastically.

Florence grinned. After working with Misa and being blown away by her modeling prowess, he had no doubt that she would shine like a star. Satisfied, he walked off to begin the arduous task of sifting through all the great shots to find the best for the catalog. At least he knew he would not have to do much retouching, as Misa was lovely as she was.

Misa tied the silk robe around herself and was about to join Florence in looking at the pictures when her talent manager approached her with her cell phone in hand. Misa turned to her expectantly, knowing well that only two things were important enough to interrupt a photo shoot. Those two things were the ICPO, and her son. She took the phone from the concerned assistant, and held it up to her ear.

"Hello?" She said into the phone. "Yes, that's me...mhm..." She listened intently. As the moments passed, her features went from excited, to neutral, to worried. "Oh my gosh...I...I'm very sorry...Yes, I understand. I'll be right over to pick up my son. Thank you..." She said with seriousness. With that she hung up the cell phone. She sighed and her shoulders slumped as she ran a hand over her bangs.

Sealing the robe tighter, she walked over to Florence with an apologetic look.

"I'm so sorry, I have to go. I have an emergency again..." She said, regretfully. The director gave her a sympathetic look.

"It's fine, we're done here anyways. You take care of yourself and I'll see you next week!" He said, kissing her on both cheeks. He watched her go with a worried look, hoping that everything was alright...

...

A distressed Misa walked briskly up to the entrance of a clinic. She was holding the hand of a small blonde boy with bangs over his eyes and shoulder length hair which bobbed as he trailed behind his mother. The boy glanced at the plain building with vacant eyes, looking disinterested in everything around him. Misa on the other hand was livid as she replayed in her mind the conversation that took place only an hour before.

* * *

-_flashback-_

The stuffy director of Easton Academy, the most prestigious school in the city looked at her with pursed lips and unyielding eyes.

"...I regret to inform you, Miss Amane, that we simply cannot tolerate Mihael's unruly behavior in this institution any longer! I must take disciplinary action." Said the woman from behind her desk. Misa braced herself, dreading what was coming next. She'd been down this path with her son before, three times already, at three different pre-schools.

"Now, our policy states that we cannot dismiss a child without proper mediation, so consider this the prelude to your son's dismissal from this institution. I am sorry but I am signing his expulsion papers on the grounds that he is disruptive, uncooperative with teachers, and aggressive towards the other children." Said the woman, adjusting her black-rimmed glasses as she glanced down at the boy in question.

Mello sat in a chair next to his mother, twiddling his thumbs without a care in the world, unperturbed by the news of his expulsion. Though the boy was only three years old, Misa had no doubt that he understood what was happening. He was very smart for his age. Easton requires all children to take an intelligence exam prior to enrolling and even the director had once said that in all her years, she'd never seen intelligence exam scores as high as his. However, as smart as he was, he was also troublesome.

The first few days at Easton were good. He'd been very sweet to everyone, and quiet. Misa was happy, thinking that she'd finally found a good pre-school program for him. It came as a shock to her when a week later she was told that a girl was sent home because her Mihael "accidentally" pushed her down some stairs. She didn't believe it, or rather, she refused to. Then as the weeks went by she received many more complaints about him from the instructors. These ranged from bullying the other children, to setting off the fire alarm, to running away, and even stealing things. Finally, today the other kids fought back and bit Mello on the arm several times, leaving cuts and imprints on her son's skin. Apparently this happened because Mihael pushed a couple of boys on the playground into a colony of fire ants. Why there were fire ants in the playground, she could only guess, but the two boys went home crying, with large red welts all over their bodies. It was awful.

The director passed Misa the expulsion papers over the desk. The young mother pleaded with her.

"Please, Mrs. White, don't expel him...I know my son has gotten into trouble in the past but could you give him another chance? Please, I'll talk to him, it's just that I don't think he'll like any of the other schools..." She said, putting her hands over the expulsion papers. The truth was that Mello had already been expelled from two other institutions and Easton was not only the best school, but also her last option for a school within miles. If Mello was kicked out from here, then she wouldn't know what to do.

The director looked at her with unsympathetic eyes. "Are you familiar with evil child syndrome?"

"What?"

"Evil child syndrome, it's not an official medical term, but it can be applied to your son..."

Misa gasped and looked over at Mello to see if he'd been affected by the term 'evil child.' The boy merely yawned and looked like he wanted to take a nap.

"Are you for real?!" Said Misa, interrupting the woman who gave her a disapproving look.

"As I was saying" The woman said sternly. "I think the term applies to your son. You see he shows no remorse or guilt or any signs at all that he even understands that what he's doing is wrong. He's unsympathetic and has no regard for rules."

"He's three! Oh my gosh, are-" She turned to Mello and covered his ears. "-Are you seriously implying that my son is some sort of psychopath or whatever right to his face?"

"Yes, I am. I would say that's a fair assessment too."

"How could you say that?!" Said Misa balling her hands.

"I hold an advanced degree in child psychology that's how I can say that." Said the woman.

Misa just gaped at her. '_The nerve of this woman!'_ She thought angrily.

The director sighed and removed her glasses from her face. "Regardless, the point that I'm trying to make is that there is one last thing you could do. According to our policy, a child in your son's situation could theoretically return to this institution if and only if he is subjected to a psychiatric evaluation by a child psychiatrist. And only after you provide a report from this person stating that your son is fit to be around other children can he come back." She said. "If I were you, I would take him to see a specialist as soon as possible. Until then, this has to be done." Said the director, putting her large signature on the expulsion papers. Misa watched hopelessly with a knotting feeling as her son was kicked out of pre-school for the third time.

-_End flashback-_

* * *

Misa knelt down to Mello's height. He wouldn't even look at her.

"Hey" She said softly. "What's going on with you?" She asked him.

Mello continued to look down at his feet until Misa took his face in her hands and forced him to look her in the eyes. Mello's eyes were a coffee color, so dark they almost looked black. '_Like his eyes...'_ She thought. She frowned, waiting for him to say something but the boy just stared at her as though she weren't even there.

"Well? Say something!" She said.

Mello was silent as a grave.

"Ok...do you not like school?...Are the teachers mean to you...? Do the other kids bother you?" She asked, not getting any responses.

"What is happening, are you angry at me? Did I do something wrong?!" She continued in vain.

She huffed and frowned. "Mihael please, you haven't spoken to me in months and I know you can talk! I would love it if you said something to me, anything...it would make me very happy. Don't you want to make your mommy happy?" She asked, hopeful.

Mello shrugged. That was more than he usually gave her and she had no idea what to make of it. Her son was like an enigma, one that hadn't spoken a word to her in nearly five months. She knew he could talk. He could talk, and laugh, and play and do everything that other children did because she'd seen him do it from a very young age. It was only until a few months ago that shrugs, groans, and head movements became his main form of communication, as though he'd forgotten how to speak. Even in school he'd just point to things he wanted, or whine when he didn't like something, or draw pictures, or shrug. Out of all his gestures, the shrug was her least favorite because she could never tell what he meant by it, and every time he did it, it was like a painful reminder of the fact that she did not understand her own son.

Misa bit back her frustration, feeling an all-too-familiar sensation that she'd dealt with someone like this before, and she didn't like it.

"OK then, if you won't tell me what's wrong, then I have no choice but to take you to see this psychiatrist!" She declared, putting on her sunglasses. With determination, she grabbed his hand and marched inside as Mello trailed behind, barely keeping up with her strides.

A tall brown-haired man passed her at the door and turned his head sharply to catch another look at her. Misa noticed but did not even bother to look his way. The last thing she wanted right now was a man. In fact, she hadn't dated anyone after L. Between her trying to rebuild her acting, singing, and modeling career, doing ICPO detective work, and now dealing with Mello's behavior issues, she had no time and no desire to start a relationship with someone new.

"Wow miss, I think you dropped this!" Said the man, catching up to her. Misa stopped and looked at what he held in his hands, noticing that it was a piece of paper she'd never seen before. '_Really? He wants to talk to me this badly?'_

"It's not mine" She said coolly, walking off. The man looked surprised but he followed her anyways.

"Eh, sorry if I'm being rude but I couldn't help but think that you're very beautiful. Are you-"

Misa cut the man off by shoving her left hand in the man's face.

"I'm married." She said pointing to the diamond ring on her left ring finger. The man said a simple "Oh." and then stayed quiet. Satisfied by having squashed the man's advances, she turned and resumed her strut toward the clinic's reception area. Mello glanced behind them to see the man standing on the same spot, looking stupefied.

'_Ha, the marriage ring never fails.'_ She thought smugly. She had to commend herself for pulling off such an efficient man-repellent. _  
_

When she reached the large reception lobby, more heads turned her way which only made her roll her eyes. She ignored them all as she made her way to the desk, feeling as though she were on a catwalk already with the amount of people staring at her. It was almost ridiculous, she wasn't even wearing anything outrageous, just black boots, black leggings a dress and a cute overcoat. What was there to stare at? And whisper at?

She could have sworn some woman behind her whispered something that sounded like "stuck-up barbie." '_Hmph! Unreal...'_ She thought, annoyed. She chose to ignore it and pretend that the woman was not referring to her even though it was clear that she was.

"Hi may I help you?" Greeted the receptionist, a pretty young woman with short brown hair and glasses.

Misa removed her sunglasses and glanced down and the small boy attached to her, bringing him forward. "An appointment for him please" She said, bringing her voice down to a whisper "He needs to see a child psychiatrist..." She said.

"Aw, he's adorable" Said the young woman cooing at Mello. "When would you like the appointment?"

"As soon as possible. Today, if there's any opening!" She said. The young woman looked at the appointment schedule and frowned.

"Hmm, it actually doesn't look like we'll have anything open until three weeks from now..."

Misa groaned. Three weeks of Mello not being in school was a long time, not to mention that she'd have to cancel her photo shoots, recording session, and acting audition to stay with him.

"Would I be able to switch appointment slots with anyone? It's urgent." Said Misa with a pleading look.

The young woman thought for a moment. "Hmm, for this little man, I think I can try something." She said, smiling at Mello. "I'll be right back." She said, disappearing into a hallway behind the receptionist station.

'_Oh please, please let this work out, I need these next few weeks' _She prayed. It was at times like these that she wished she weren't a single mom.

...

Meanwhile, in the back of the clinic, a handsome man with dirty blonde hair came out of his consultation. He stretched his limbs a bit and yawned. He then walked over to the chart hanging outside his office, picking it up.

"Nice, no more appointments today...I might actually make it home in time to catch the game." He said to himself. He cheered a little and put the chart back on the rack, loosening up his shirt collar and removing his lab coat.

"Hey!" Said the young receptionist.

"Hey Susan, what's up?" Said the man.

"So Alphonse, you weren't planning to go home now were you?" She said, biting her lip with a nervous look.

"Why Susie, I was." He said with a smile. He already knew what was coming.

"Oh. Well now I feel _awful_ because you see, I was gonna ask you if you wanted to take one more patient for the day..." She said sheepishly.

"Ha, I knew it!" He said, chuckling. "You always do this to me Susie. Always!" He said shaking his head.

"I know! I know! But listen, this time it's a really cute kid and it sounds like it's kind of urgent, and I told the mother that I'd try my best to work something out."

Alphonse sighed and looked at her with mock disapproval.

"Damn...I'm gonna miss tonight's hockey game though..." He muttered.

"Please!" She said, pouting.

"Ah, Alright...I'll do it, but in exchange you gotta give Prinsky to someone else next time. Tell him I'm busy or something, I seriously can't stand the guy coming into my office and spazzing out like that. Give him to George! He owes me for eating my lunch!" He said, making Susan erupt into laughter.

"Okay, I'll switch Mr. Prinsky over to George." She said with a sigh.

"Thanks...I guess I'd better go see this 'really cute kid' now."

...

Misa knelt down to Mello's level and started telling him all the things he needed to say to the psychiatrist. Lovingly, she ran her fingers through a few strands of his hair which looked a lot like her hair. Satisfied with his appearance, she took his face in her hands.

"I love you" She said kissing him on the forehead. Mello gave her a weak smile but it warmed her heart nonetheless.

She stood back up to see that the receptionist had not returned. She rested her elbow on the counter and stared at the clock. It was 20 minutes past five. She sighed and looked back at the hallway entrance to see a rather handsome man with dark blonde hair and clear blue eyes approaching her. He seemed to scan the area for someone before turning to her.

"Hi, are you being helped?" He asked her.

"Oh, yes. Someone went back there to find out some information about an appointment, but I don't remember her name..." Explained Misa. She stopped talking when she noticed the man was staring at her with a slight smile.

She looked at him confused and he crossed his arms over his chest, looking thoughtful, as though he were studying her.

"Wow" He said.

"What?"

"You're stunning."

She rolled her eyes. "Do you just show up here and pretend to help people so you can hit on them?"

"Actually, I'm a-"

"Whatever-" She raised her left arm to show off her 'wedding ring' "-I'm married."

"Oh, what a lucky man. I'm not surprised though." He said.

"Well good. My husband is very jealous and he doesn't like it when other men hit on me so don't tell me I'm pretty or stunning. In fact, don't even look at me." She said.

"O-kay...has anyone ever told you that you're kind of feisty?" He asked. Misa narrowed her eyes at him and was about to tell him off when the receptionist came back.

"Sorry! This is Dr. Alphonse Sommers he's going to be seeing Mihael for a pre-screening now."

The blonde man looked at Susan confused and then leaned over the counter, finally catching a look at his pint-sized patient.

"Oh!" He said. "I didn't even notice this little guy was here. Wow, you have a kid, you don't look like a mother." He told Misa directly.

Misa scowled. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Never mind." He said walking around the counter.

Mello saw the man come up to him and he inched back, clinging to Misa's leg. The man smiled and leaned down to greet him. Mello didn't return the greeting but that didn't seem to bother the man.

"Alright Miss Amane, you're all set." Said the receptionist.

"Miss Amane? Don't you mean _Mrs._ Amane, Susie? She's married, you know." Said Alphonse. The receptionist gave him a strange look.

"Hm? But she said-"

"Yes, it's _Mrs_. Amane, sorry I guess I should have made that clearer before. Thanks!" said Misa to the receptionist.

"My pleasure. Have a good session Mihael" Said the receptionist, waving at the small boy as he and Misa followed Alphonse into his office.

* * *

..._later that night..._

Misa walked into the ICPO building that she called home. She was exhausted and not looking forward to the mountain of paperwork that awaited her, but that was the sacrifice she had to make in order to have her modeling career. She could do her modeling stuff during the day but once that finished, she had to come home and deal with all the ICPO detective work.

'_Well, it could be worse...I could be in prison...' _She thought.

Impatient to get back home, Mello ran off and pressed the up button for the elevator. Misa giggled as he shuffled his feet eagerly waiting for the doors to open. She sighed and went over to him. At the end of the day, he always put a smile on her face.

"Hi there! We're back" Announced Misa, walking into Halle's apartment.

"Hi!" Said Halle, emerging from her kitchen.

"Come here you, and give your godmother a hug!" She said to Mello. Mello silently obliged and even gave her a smile too. The boy then went over to the living room where Gevanni, now his godfather, was watching TV. Gevanni and Halle had been together for almost three years now and were engaged to be married in a few months. Being that they were the closest thing to family that Misa had, it only made sense for them to be Mello's godparents.

Mello climbed onto the couch and sat next to Gevanni. The man greeted him with a high five before patting him on the head playfully. As Gevanni pored over some documents, Mello stayed looking at the TV, taking interest in the show that Gevanni had been watching. It was a crime series involving a shrewd detective, outlandish murders and mysteries. Immediately, the boy was enthralled.

"So what happened?" Asked Halle, keeping her voice down.

"Mello got kicked out of school..." Misa said regretfully.

"Again?!" Said Halle, wide-eyed.

"Yeah...just wait till I tell you what he did this time."

"Oh no..."

"It was pretty bad, the school nurse had to check him out because some boys bit him all over his arms" Said the young mother sadly. "I don't know what to do, Halle...I'm screwing up, aren't I? I don't know what I'm doing wrong though. "She said, frustrated. "I'm trying my best to teach him to behave, but it's not working. And everywhere he goes...people don't want him...at first I thought they were all wrong but now I'm not so sure..." She said, discouraged.

Halle offered her a glass of water and food. Misa thanked her and sat down, remembering that she'd barely eaten all day.

"I'm sorry." Said Halle.

"Me too." Said Misa, sounding tired.

"Why don't you just have him home-schooled?"

"I thought about that, but I really want him to go to a regular school so that he can get socialized. I want him to meet other kids his age, I want him to play, and make friends, and be happy, like I was when I was little." She said. Halle gave her a sympathetic look.

"Have you ever thought about..."

"What?" Asked Misa.

"Nothing...it's a stupid idea, I don't think you would like it anyway."

"Well, I'm all out of ideas so I'm open to any suggestions" She said with a sad smile.

Halle leaned in to make sure that what she was about to say did not reach Mello.

"Have you ever thought about asking L for help?" Asked Halle.

Misa tensed up.

"Ok, hear me out. Even if you just ask him how he grew up...maybe he can guess what's wrong with Mello, who knows? Mello clearly doesn't have your temperament, well, except for when he throws a tantrum. Then he's exactly like you. But that aside, maybe he takes after L..."

Misa glared at her but didn't say anything. Ask L for help? Yeah right...as if he'd know what to do. Besides, how would she even go about doing that? She can't just call him after three years and ask him questions about his childhood! And even if she wanted to, she had no idea where L was, or how to contact him.

Without giving Halle an answer, Misa quickly finished her food and excused herself to go downstairs to do work.


	36. Paragon II

**Writer's Note:**_ *Sigh* I really should stop with these two-part chapters. They annoy me. This was all one chapter and I dislike overly long chapters (anything more than 5k words) so I cut it up into two chaps. On a separate note, a crazy idea has been forming in my mind. I can draw really well. I could probably draw some stuff for this story or create some artwork for it. I think that'd be cool and if anyone wants to do any of that, feel free, but regardless, I think I'll sketch some stuff out. It should be fun! Now on with the story!_

* * *

-_at Wammy's House-_

Roger sat in his office with Watari, waiting. It had been a long time coming, but today was finally the day when Casey and Quinn would be receiving their first assignments as full-fledged detectives. For the past two-and-a-half years they'd been studying hard under L's tutelage, passing arduous tests, overcoming daunting frustrations, until finally they were ready to assume the title of L. Watari handed Roger the fat envelope, straight from L himself, stating the details of Quinn and Casey's first case.

Several minutes later, the large mahogany door opened. Quinn walked in first, followed by Casey. They were now 16 and 12 respectively and although they were still children, their time with L had transformed them into confident young people that were not afraid of any problem. Watari beamed with pride upon seeing the two L successors now. It seemed like only yesterday when he'd first laid eyes upon them. They looked like scared children then, whereas now, they had a determined, fearless look about them. They'd both come such a long way.

"Well now that we're all here, let's get started, shall we?" Said Roger, running a fancy letter opener under the seal of the fat envelope. Quinn and Casey looked on intently as Roger slit it open. Inside the large envelope, there were three things in total, two small packages and a letter. one of the packages was addressed to Quinn and the other one was addressed to Casey. Roger placed those on the table and moved on to the third item, a letter handwritten in L's neat chicken scratch. The old man unfurled it and frowned at it's brevity.

He read the first few lines and then put the letter down on the desk with a heavy sigh. He shook his head and pursed his lips while holding out the letter to Watari.

"He's done it again, Wammy! Read this rubbish!" Said Roger, his voice betraying his anger. The two children looked at the letter with curious eyes. Watari read it and he too frowned.

"Hm...I'm not quite sure what he meant by this..." Said Watari, wrapping up the letter. "I shall have to ask him myself but I have no doubt that this is what he intended."

Roger removed his glasses and massaged his temples, feeling his blood pressure skyrocket.

"What is it Roger? What's our case going to be?" Asked Quinn, looking unsure.

"Nothing!" Said Roger at last. "It says you've both been rejected."

"What? What do you mean we've been rejected?!" Said Casey.

"Yeah, what gives?!" Asked Quinn.

"L has rejected you both as his successors." Said Roger mournfully.

"I can't believe this! More than two years of work preparing us to be his successors all thrown into the garbage!" Said Quinn outraged.

"Yeah, we worked so hard too! Unbelievable." Said Casey, crossing her arms angrily.

Roger looked at them both, not knowing what more to say. He simply sighed and muttered something along the lines of "I'm getting too old for this." He remained silent, looking upset.

Watari excused himself to go speak with L. As Wammy exited, the two children grabbed their individual packages and turned to leave with subtle smiles on their faces. They walked out and once they were certain that they were out of earshot, the two threw their hands around each other and cheered in a small victory dance.

"Yes! We're free!" Said Quinn, joyfully.

"I know! I'm so happy! I really didn't want to be L!" Said Casey with a giant smile on her face.

"Me neither!"

"Well...we dodged a bullet there." Said the girl.

"Yup..."

"So what do you think these are?" Asked Casey, feeling the weight of her package.

"Beats me, I guess they're parting gifts." Said Quinn eyeing his own envelope.

Casey shrugged and the two burst into laughter again.

"You acted pretty upset for a moment there, you almost had me fooled" Said Casey, walking alongside him.

Quinn smiled and snorted, his bright green eyes full of mischief.

"You weren't too shabby either." He said as the two walked side by side to the cafeteria, all the while talking about how priceless Roger's face was when he read L's letter.

...

Meanwhile, outside in the wintry field of Wammy's House, two men sat talking by the pond. One was standing, smoking a cigarette and making grand gestures as he talked, his jagged brown hair bouncing with each sentence. The other man was perfectly still, perched on the bench, listening to the other man talk while eating a chocolate bar. Watari approached the two men with mild hesitation. He still hadn't grown accustomed to L and Moresly actually having cordial conversations with each other.

It appeared that Casey and Quinn weren't the only ones who'd made a lot of progress these past 3 years. L and Moresly had matured quite a bit as well, to the point where they could even be considered friends. Before they could barely stand each other, but as of late, they were often seen carrying intellectual exchanges in peace. It really did warm Watari's heart.

"...so they did that with the control group for the chimps" Said Moresly, wrapping up his story.

"But that doesn't make any sense, they would obtain biased results..." Said L, snapping off a bit of chocolate.

"Precisely! See this is why I like you. You know what's up...and my god, I have not seen Roger look that pissed off since the time you stole everyone's candy on Christmas morning." He said pointing toward the director's office. Indeed Roger was looking out the window at them with a very sour expression. L looked at him and smiled, which caused Roger to frown even more and shut the curtains, obstructing their view of him.

"Also, your father is coming, I think you're in trouble." Said Moresly.

"I think they read my letter." Said L, standing up.

Moresly looked at him and snorted. "You know, I think that deep down you do have a sense of humor!" He said, throwing his cigarette in the pond. "Good luck, and try not to die out there. If you come back in the same shape you did last time, I will lobotomize you." He said, walking off so that he and Watari may talk alone.

"Goodbye" Said L with a small wave.

Watari greeted Moresly as he passed him and then turned toward L.

"L, what is the meaning of this letter? Roger is furious and Quinn and Casey are extremely upset." Said Watari, holding the letter out to him. L looked at it but did not bother taking it.

"It's exactly as I said, I'm rejecting them both as my successors on the basis that I'm not going anywhere and we have a lot of work to do..." Said L, looking off into the distance.

"I don't understand..." Said the old man.

L finished his chocolate and began to walk past him. "Wammy, we're leaving this place today. My latest case will require some light traveling, besides, there's a lot of work to be done and I need some sort of outpost better suited to my needs than Wammy's House. Let's go." He said nonchalantly.

Latest case? Lots of work to be done? Watari put the letter back in his coat and smiled, realizing how much he missed hearing L say those words.

* * *

-_The following day at the psychiatric clinic-_

Misa waited anxiously outside Dr. Sommers's consulting office. She wasn't allowed to be present during the session so all she could do was sit and wait. She looked around and noticed that there was no one left at the clinic except for her and the nice receptionist who was organizing some files. She fidgeted and stared at the clock. It was almost 7pm.

'_Man, what's taking so long? At this rate I'm not going to be home till 9.' _She groaned, dreading the work that awaited her. She really couldn't catch a break as of late.

Five minutes later, a door opened somewhere and she heard footsteps coming down the hallway. She stood when she saw Mello enter the reception area with Dr. Sommers.

"Hi! Come here" She said welcoming her son with open arms. The boy ran to her and hugged her. Dr. Sommers watched the scene before him and then loosened his shirt collar and stretched his neck out.

"That was intense..." Said the doctor with a sigh.

Misa looked at him expectantly and waited for him to say more, but he simply moved to the back of the reception desk and began to put away some things. '_What the hell? Is that all he's going to say? What am I supposed to make of that?!'_ She thought with a questioning look.

She approached the desk and watched him. He ignored her as he opened a file and wrote some stuff on it. The receptionist girl smiled at her and gathered her things to go home, patting Mello on the head on her way out. Realizing that it was just Mello and her left at the clinic with the doctor, Misa seemed unsure of whether she should leave too. Just when she was about to say something, Dr. Sommers finally spoke.

"So you're not married today?"

"Hm?" She said, puzzled.

"You're not married today." He said putting the file down.

"Uh, I already showed you this-" She said showing him her ring finger again. "- I am married!"

"Not. Look again." He said pointing to her hand with amusement.

Misa looked at her hand to find that there was no ring on her left ring finger. She gasped, wondering where it was, and that's when she remembered that she'd left it on her night table. '_Damn!'_

"Oh no!" She said feigning concern. "I must have left it at home this morning..."

The doctor held back a chuckle. "You know, you don't have to come up with an explanation. I get it, you're afraid that I'm going to ask you out."

"I, uh, no...of course not." She said, diverting her eyes from his.

"Sure..." He said, putting away the file and walking away without any explanation.

"Hey, shouldn't you like, give me a report of some sort or at least tell me something about my son?" She asked, frowning.

"Yeah, but I'm actually heading out because I was supposed to be off 2 hours ago. I'm afraid you'll have to wait until Monday..." He said.

"Monday? Really, you can't just tell me now? I just need to know if it's good news or bad news."

"Hmm...it's not as simple as 'yes' or 'no.' These reports are kind of complex and there's a lot of things that need to be addressed." He told her. Misa's expression fell and she ran a hand over Mello's head with a sad look.

"Ok, I understand. We'll be back on Monday." She said, taking Mello's hand.

"Well, if you want, you can come with me, or follow me, or whatever you prefer, to this awesome Italian place around the corner and I could tell you all about it there. I'm starving." He said.

Misa gave him a suspicious glare. "Are you asking me out?"

"No, not at all! I'm just _informing_ you that I'm going to eat dinner right now and that you are free to accompany me, and that if you do, I see no reason why we can't talk about your son...that's all. No tricks." He said, grinning innocently.

She narrowed her eyes at him, debating whether or not she should risk it. As if to make a point, her stomach grumbled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten in hours. She looked at Mello who was tugging on her hand and she could only imagine that he felt the same way.

...

-_At the Italian restaurant-_

Misa dug into her chicken salad with gusto, thankful to have food in front of her. Dr. Sommers watched her with an amused smile.

"Mmm, this House Salad is really good." She said, impaling a chicken strip with her fork.

"This place is great, I come here almost every day." He said, cutting up his steak.

While the two adults ate happily, Mello sat in his chair looking at his salad with disinterest. He took his fork and rolled a tomato around on his plate, mixing it with the other green stuff distastefully. He hated salad so much. Besides the disgusting green things, the only other decent thing on his plate was the chicken strips covered in a semi-sweet sauce but he'd already eaten those, leaving only the detestable greenery.

He groaned miserably and the two adults looked at him.

"What's the matter buddy? You don't like your salad?" Asked Dr. Sommers.

Mello didn't even look at him. '_She forgot the ring...and now we have to eat with this guy who asked me all those annoying questions...great.'_ He thought, moving the leafy greens on his plate feebly.

"Mello, eat your food." Said Misa. "I know you're hungry, so eat."

Again, the boy sighed and put his head down on the table. He'd rather sleep through his hunger than eat that bitter grass and leaves.

"Mihael, sit up straight and don't put your elbows on the table" Chastised Misa. She straightened him up and he whimpered, getting ready to throw a tantrum. She gave him a warning look and he shoved his plate away in defiance. Misa frowned at him but left him alone. The last thing she wanted to do was cause a scene at the restaurant. Mello put his head back down on the table and Misa did her best to ignore him as they ate in uncomfortable silence.

"I have a question for you" Said the doctor, grabbing Misa's attention. "Have you ever tried giving him something else to eat? I mean, what 3-year-old likes salad?"

"Oh yeah? And what do you suggest?"

The man thought for a second. "How about french fries or a burger? Kids like those." He said. Misa grimaced.

"_French fries?_" She repeated distastefully. "You're a doctor and you're suggesting to me that I give him fattening french fries?! Shouldn't you be encouraging me to set good eating habits for him?"

"Yes, but not if he's starving himself because he doesn't like the food."

Misa threw her hands up in defeat. "Fine, you're the expert!" She said with irritation. "Should I get him a side of chocolates with those fries too?!"

Alphonse nodded his head and gave her a smile, thinking that she looked really cute when she was angry. He called over their waiter and within minutes, a plate of freshly made french fries arrived at their table. Misa arched her brow and shook her head as Alphonse replaced Mello's salad plate with the french fries. The boy lifted his head off the table and eyed the golden brown sticks with mild interest. He skewered one with his fork and ate it tentatively. The salty, greasy stick fell apart in his mouth and the boy grimaced and swallowed it slowly.

"Hah! He doesn't like it, I can see it in his face" Said Misa triumphantly. She inwardly cheered. She really didn't want her son to turn out like L, eating junk like a glutton all the time. She shuddered at the thought. She looked up from her salad and nearly jumped back when she saw that Alphonse had moved his chair very close to her and was leaning in close to her face.

"Woah" She said pulling back.

"Relax, I just wanted to talk to you about him without him overhearing" Said the man, nodding toward Mello who was toying with the french fries on his plate.

"Oh right." She said. "So what do you think?"

"He's very smart, that's for sure. But he won't talk and he gets irritated very easily, but above all, he really dislikes other children, and I think I know one of the reasons why..."

He had her undivided attention now and he motioned for her to lean in closer. She did and he whispered in her ear.

"I think your son has father issues."

Mello looked up from his plate to see his mother and the annoying doctor very close to each other and he didn't like it. He'd seen adults kiss before and that's exactly what it looked like to him. He dropped his fork on his plate and pouted.

"Oh no" Said Misa looking disconcerted. Alphonse nodded seriously and then tucked a few strands of her hair behind her ear. Surprised by the touch, she moved back a little but he moved with her.

"Shh, it's OK." He whispered to her as he leaned in for a kiss. His lips grazed hers but before they could make full contact Mello threw himself at Misa.

"No!" Cried Mello, pulling Misa toward him and away from Alphonse as hard as he could.

"Mello!" She said surprised as the boy clung to her protectively. "A-are you OK?" She asked, alarmed.

Alphonse sat back on his chair, looking confused. Mello threw him a dirty look and stuck his tongue out at him. Misa chastised him but that only made the boy get teary-eyed, ready to cry.

"Shh, please don't cry...not here" She pleaded.

"Here let me try something" Said Alphonse, moving to take Mihael from her. The boy clung to Misa for his life and when he felt Alphonse touch him, he jumped right onto the table, walked all over it and jumped off the other side, running away as fast as he could. Misa gasped and stood from her seat.

"Mihael!" Yelled Misa, running after him. '_Oh no no no, this wasn't supposed to happen...'_

Heads were turning all around the restaurant as people began to whisper their disapproval. Mihael ran under a table with a party of 8 people, causing them to stand from their chairs and a frantic Misa to apologize profusely. She raised the table mantle in time to see her son run out the other end of the table, his blonde hair bobbing as he ran toward the bathrooms.

"Mihael, come back here! Now!" She hissed as she chased after him. The boy looked behind him to see his mother gaining on him as more patrons stood to get a better look at the commotion. One of the waiters tried to block his way but the boy side stepped him and pulled on the mantle of a nearby table, sweeping off all the cutlery, glasses, and decorations right onto the floor. Glasses shattered and there was even a candle that caught fire on the mantle, causing patrons to gasp and look on in fear. Luckily the waiter took care of the small fire quickly. Misa nearly screamed, thinking that her son had just set the restaurant ablaze.

"I'm terribly sorry! I'll pay for all these damages!" She said, walking past the waiter in the direction of the bathrooms. Other waiters started to crowd the scene.

Mello jetted into the men's bathroom, and Misa followed right behind him, not realizing where she was going. She immediately caught sight of three men at the urinals and screamed, realizing where she was.

"I'm sorry!" She said closing her eyes. The three men turned to her with shocked expressions as Misa ran back out, even more embarrassed than she already was. Luckily Alphonse caught up to her just then.

"Are you OK? Where did he go?" Asked Alphonse, concerned.

"He's in the men's bathroom!" Said Misa, distraught. She looked on the verge of tears. Alphonse hugged her comfortingly and told her to wait there while he went to retrieve Mello. Misa nodded briskly and turned to see the angry maitre d' of the restaurant glaring at her. '_Oh no, this is bad.' _She thought.

There was a commotion inside the men's bathroom as things were knocked over and her son's crying echoed throughout the place. Misa bit her nails nervously as she paced back and forth. People gathered outside the door, rubbernecking, until finally, Alphonse emerged from the bathroom dragging the rebellious, teary-faced Mello behind him. Misa quickly grabbed him and carried the crying boy.

"Are you crazy?!" She hissed hugging him and giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You're going on time-out when we get home, you hear me? You're grounded!" She said, half-angry, half-worried. With that, she waded through the crowds of people, paid the waiter a lot of money to cover the damages, and left as fast as she could without even saying goodbye to Alphonse.


	37. Catharsis

**Writer's Note: **_Hi, I'm Aleatrice and I have a headache. Also, I love you guys and your comments/reviews and PMs and stuff. It's like Christmas morning every time I get a review haha. Anyways, I'd like to give a BIG thanks to **Jade Tatsu** for beta reading the heck out of this chapter like a boss. Seriously, you're awesome :D I can't believe I never tried using a beta reader before. Definitely helpful.  
_

_On a separate note, I have a few warnings about this chapter. It is rated **R** because of a potty-mouthed character and also because R-rated things happen. Enjoy!_

* * *

Helicopters flew over London that morning. Panicked onlookers crowded the perimeter of the scene as countless armed law enforcers surrounded the main entrance to London Bank. Police officers herded civilians off the street with clubs in hand, yelling for them to get back. Suddenly, the bank doors swung open and a mob of people wearing masks and costumes ran out of the place, followed by a smoke bomb. People screamed and dropped to the ground.

"All captive civilians please remain calm and stay where you are! We're moving into the bank to arrest the perpetrators!" Bellowed an officer over a megaphone. The hostages did as they were told, afraid for their lives.

"Please! Help us!" Yelled one of the hostages as the police officers ran into the bank.

There was more screaming and confusion as a second mob of people emerged from the bank all wearing masks and costumes. The shouting and mayhem continued.

Meanwhile, L was tranquil as a meadow inside his makeshift stakeout, overseeing the entire operation. He sat back in his chair with his feet propped against the table, pouring himself a cup of coffee. Glancing at the cameras, he reached for some sugar cubes.

Outside, sirens went off as police officers yelled and ransacked the bank, looking for the terrorist group that perpetrated the bank robbery.

The detective searched the sugar container, only to find it empty. L's eyes widened. He frowned and balled his fists on his knees.

"... this is not good," he said, displeased.

"Is something the matter Ryuzaki?" Asked Watari, looking up from a set of monitors.

"Yes, we're out of sugar," replied L, regarding his coffee with a mournful expression.

Watari looked at his adoptive son with concern and then inspected the sugar container, verifying that they were, in fact, out of sugar cubes.

"I'll do something about this at once."

"Please do," said the detective.

The door to the trailer opened and an officer wearing a bullet-proof vest walked inside.

"Ryuzaki, your guys searched all over the bank but they didn't find any of the terrorists," reported the commanding officer gravely. "They escaped somehow!"

"No they didn't," replied L calmly. "The terrorists, commander Ferguson, are all right there," he said, pointing to the hostages on camera.

"What do you mean? Those are the hostages," said Ferguson.

"Not all of them. Why do you think they're all wearing identical masks and costumes? It's to make it impossible for anyone to tell the difference between the terrorists and the hostages. It's a ruse meant to fool us into thinking that they're all hostages when in fact the terrorists are mixed in with the hostages," explained L.

"Those bastards..." voiced the commanding officer through gritted teeth. "So what should we do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked L. "We arrest and question everyone."

"What?! But...what about the innocent civilians?! They've been captive for days, you can't do that to them!"

"I can and I will. That's the only way to ensure that we convict the right people, now go out there and arrest all the hostages immediately. The sooner we begin interrogating them, the better," said L without a trace of remorse.

"There must be some other way..." stated the officer. L looked at him with deflated eyes, not in the mood to argue with him.

"If you have a better plan then by all means, share it, I'm curious," responded L expectantly. Some of the other agents in the trailer turned to look at the commander, eager to listen to his alternative.

"Um...uh..." he stuttered nervously, uncomfortable with being put on the spot.

Finally he cleared his throat and spoke. "I'm going to call Ferraro to see what he thinks of this," he announced, stepping aside to make the phone call. Within seconds, Ferraro answered. Ferguson quickly informed him of the situation and of L's plan to capture the civilians along with the terrorists.

"Commander Ferguson, you called me for this?" Asked Ferraro, sounding irritated.

"Eh, yes, sir. Don't you think it's wrong to-"

"Commander, we're talking about an international terrorist group that's robbed a fortune out 4 countries. This is the closest we've ever come to apprehending them, so do as detective L says. He is in charge of this operation for a reason, now good day to you commander, and don't bother me again," said Ferraro, hanging up.

Embarrassed, the commanding officer turned back to see that L was still scrutinizing him, waiting for him to divulge some brilliant plan. The disgruntled commander shook his head and put the phone down with a sigh.

"Whatever you say Ryuzaki..." he mumbled, opening the door.

Satisfied, L turned back to the cameras. The commander stepped out of the trailer and gave a few orders to his subordinates. He then picked up the megaphone and faced the crowd of frightened hostages.

"Everyone on the ground with your hands where we can see them! Now! You are all under arrest!" Announced the officer. Pandemonium erupted, the hostages cried out in protest as the police swarmed them, handling them briskly and loading them into cop cars. Some even fought the officers, causing several fights to break out.

"What is this?! We're not criminals! We're innocent employees!" Cried some of the hostages.

"You're supposed to be helping us, not turning against us!" Cried others as they resisted arrest.

In the end, the law enforcers managed to subdue everyone, and in a large procession of helicopters, cop cars, and S.W.A.T. vans, the civilians and terrorists were all taken to the police station for questioning.

...

The sound of police sirens became a distant wail. Inside the surveillance trailer, L slumped in his chair, his stomach grumbling for something sugary. Watari was taking too long to get that sugar. Unwilling to wait any longer, L decided to take matters into his own hands. He removed his headphones and left the safety of the stakeout in order to wander the blocks of London in search of something to satiate his craving. Along the way he passed several establishments but none seemed to have anything appetizing. In the end, he reluctantly settled on a small bar called Midnight Blu.

It was a little past midday and the Midnight Blu was nearly deserted. The entrance was a set of worn-out double doors that swiveled in both directions, and the rest of the place had an air of abandonment about it as well with its old wood floors, simple black decor, long plain bar and cheap light fixtures. He had half a mind to go somewhere else but he rather liked the solitude of the place and besides, it had extra large windows for people-watching.

L walked over to the end of the bar and settled himself on a bar stool. He looked at the menu and encountered yet another problem: he had very little knowledge of alcoholic beverages and hadn't even touched one since _that day_ three years ago. The one bartender, a young-looking man with a dark blue faux hawk came up to him, and L, unsure of what to get, simply asked for "something sweet."

"Ok" Said the bartender with a smile.

...

An hour passed and L watched the world go by the bar. In that hour he'd sampled a fusion liqueur, a sweet wine, and an ice cream drink which was his favorite so far. He was pacing himself but his tolerance was low, and he could feel his head buzzing already.

"Yo, Sea Bass!"

L felt a presence next to him, yelling for someone, or something. '_Sea bass?...'_

"Sea Bass!"

He looked to his side and saw that a pale woman with a nose ring and dark makeup was sitting next to him. She leaned over the bar, causing her messy red and black hair to fall over her shoulders as she tapped the surface of the bar with long, black fingernails. Her tight black leather shorts stretched with the movements of her long legs as she bent over further, trying to get the bartender's attention.

"Sea Bass, come here you bitch," she called, smiling coyly.

The bar tender came over and hugged the woman over the bar.

"Roxy, you're early, I'm shocked," said the bartender.

"Fuck, I've been calling you all day! Guess what? I dumped him!" Announced the woman named Roxy. "I finally did it! I moved all my shit out and everything!"

"Go you!" He congratulated, pouring the woman a drink, which she gulped down in one go.

"Woo! I needed that. So yeah, I told that cheating son-of-a-bitch-bastard to go fuck himself and his bitch whore," she said.

It was then that the woman seemed to notice L for the first time. She turned to him and eyed him with interest.

"Hi there, what's up?" She said. L barely acknowledged her existence.

"Wanna drink with me? I just broke up with my jerk of an ex!"

"No, thank you. I'm fine," Said L dismissively, looking out the window at the people passing by. The bartender gave Roxy a look and shook his head slightly. Roxy waved him off and smirked mischeviously. L remained oblivious to this silent exchange.

"You're not from around here right? I can tell cause you don't have an accent and I've never seen you here before."

"Mhm," affirmed L with disinterest.

"So where ya from?"

L took his sugary drink and finished it, not saying anything. Roxy put her hands on her hips with feigned outrage and pouted, though her eyes betrayed her amusement.

"Cat got your tongue, huh? That's fine. Hey, you wanna see my piercings?" She said suggestively running her tongue over her red lips, flashing her tongue piercing. "I have a lot...mostly in places that have never seen the light of day," she purred with a devilish smile and a wink.

L cocked his head, getting the feeling that she was being what some might call 'inappropriate' with him. She wiggled her eyebrows at him and laughed.

"Look at you! I knew that would get your attention," she declared triumphantly.

L was confused now. It was as if she were playing some sort of game that he wasn't following. '_What a strange woman.' _He thought, nibbling on his thumb.

Roxy came closer and put her face close to his drink, inspecting it. "I can make you more of that if you want. I can make it better too," she claimed.

Without another word, the woman threw her long legs over the bar and slid over the top to the other side. With practiced movements she began to mix liquids into a cup as L regarded her curiously.

"Yeah you're definitely a newbie, just look at you, ha! I'm a bartender here." she told him.

"Oh. That makes sense."

"Yup. So what's your name newbie?" She asked, sliding him the drink. L recognized it as the same ice cream drink he had before, only noticeably sweeter and creamier, which he liked.

"Ryuzaki."

"Ryuzaki? Well it's awesome meeting you! I'm Roxy and I'm the best fucking thing that's ever come out of this bar! Also, I think you're really cute!"

'Sea Bass' snorted and rolled his eyes at her declaration.

_'What a strange woman indeed...'_ Thought L.

"You remind me of a lost puppy, kinda. You have that look...that wandering, please-take-me-home-with-you-and-fuck-me look. And I want to."

He stared at her blankly. He had what look?

"Haha! Just kidding. I'm not some slut!" Said the woman.

L set his drink down and nibbled on his thumb, just watching her make delicious sweet drinks for him, one after another. He didn't drink them all right away but he had a queue and by the looks of it, he was going to take a while to finish them all, which was fine because it seemed like Roxy wanted to talk to him. She went about her business at the bar, but talked nonstop the entire time, just telling him things that one probably wouldn't tell a stranger. He sat there, sipping drinks, listening to her life story from her traumatizing childhood, to her abusive relationships with men, to her latest heartbreak plus some. He didn't know why she was telling him all those things, or why he was sticking around listening to them. Perhaps it was her zest and cheerfulness that kept him engaged, because it reminded him of a certain blonde girl he knew and how she was always upbeat despite her troubles. Something about Roxy felt familiar and warm and...

'_Misa-like'_ He concluded, finally realizing what it was.

...

Watari furrowed his brow as he called L's cell phone for the fourth time with no answer.

'_Where could he be and why isn't he answering?'_ The old man wondered. With pursed lips, he looked at L's empty workstation which now had a container brimming with shiny new sugar cubes.

...

Hours passed and the Midnight Blu began to get crowded and noisy. The detective sat in the same spot, finishing up the last of his sugary drinks and watching Roxy serve drinks to everyone else. He watched as she joined in the merriment with concoctions of her own, occassionally stepping out from the back of the bar to dance with a patron or do shots. She really was the life of the party. He, on the other hand wasn't particularly fond of the crowded bar scene, especially after the incident at Kuroi Uma bar three years back.

L took out his cell phone and saw that he had five missed phone calls from Watari. He noted the time and frowned when he saw that it was almost midnight; he'd been out for twelve hours. Immediately he began dialing Watari's number, screwing up some of the keystrokes. He marveled a little at his impaired motor skills and stopped trying.

'I should go..." He mumbled to no one in particular. He left money on the counter, probably much more than he owed, and stood to his feet, feeling wobbly at once. With considerable effort, he steadied himself and went through the swiveling doors to the outside.

"Ryuzaki! You're leaving already?" Asked Roxy, catching up to him and taking him by the arm. "How convenient because I just got off my shift and I could use someone to walk me home."

"I don't think that would be wise. There are certain things that I should avoid doing in my current state. I should not operate heavy machinery, I should not make any extreme, life-changing decisions and I should not go home with you. Goodbye."

He started to walk away, overlooking the fact that she was still attached to his arm and thus walking with him. She stayed that way for some time, waiting to see if he would notice. They walked an entire block side by side, not saying anything, until she saw her apartment building.

"My house is just up ahead...wanna come upstairs to check it out?" She said. "Pleeease!"

He turned to her, surprised. "You're still here?"

"Haha, I never left! You're drunk."

"I'm not as drunk as you think, and the answer is still no. Besides, why should I visit your residence? What's there to see in your home?"

"Uh..." Said Roxy, stomped on what to say next. '_Is this guy dense or what?'_

"Okay...you got me. I like you, if that answers your question," she admitted.

"No, that doesn't make any sense, you barely know me. Actually I retract that statement, you don't know me at all, not even my nam-" He stopped himself.

"Fuck, I don't know...maybe I'm weird and lonely and you seem to be a trustworthy person. I confessed to you my whole life story and you listened and you didn't fucking crucify me or anything like some other people I know. It was nice and I thought maybe that we could be friends."

"I'm not trustworthy. You shouldn't trust me, ever."

"...that's the most honest thing a guy has ever said to me. Thank you," she said, mesmerized.

"That's the first time someone's ever called me honest. I'm a liar."

"You're so weird."

"That I've heard before." He said, walking away in that languid way of his.

"Please don't go yet. I had a horrible day and I feel safe and good with you, I know we only just met like 13 hours ago or whatever-"

"Twelve."

She rolled her eyes at him and took his cold fingers into her hand, causing him to sigh with mild irritation.

"Please..."

Reluctantly, L slowed to a halt and let her pull him by the hand into the dingy apartment building.

...

As he'd expected, there wasn't much to see in Roxy's apartment. She didn't own much, not even a real bed. She had a small couch and a mattress on the floor, her stuff was scattered around, still in boxes and suitcases from when she'd moved in earlier that day.

"Here you go!" She said pulling a box of fresh glazed doughnuts out of her suitcase and tossing it to him.

'_Maybe it was good to come here'_ He thought, prying the box open. "Thank you" he said from the couch.

"Don't even worry about it" She said, laughing. "I have two more boxes and some cookies if you want."

L began to sample the pastries, poking each one with his long fingers, trying to pick the best one. Meanwhile, Roxy rummaged through her things, unpacking some clothes and chatting away about more stuff. L only half-listened as he tended to the doughnuts.

"...so you never answered my question at the bar," she continued, without looking at him."...you know, the one about seeing my piercings and stuff, I was kind of joking but kind of serious at the same time...fuck, it's hot as balls in here!..." She exclaimed, throwing off her top and revealing small, bouncy breasts. She tossed the material across the room.

L looked up with his mouth full of doughnuts to see a topless Roxy removing her skimpy shorts, leaving her in nothing but a black thong. He stopped chewing and quickly swallowed the mouthful of doughnut.

"Wha-what are you doing?" He stammered, gaping at her naked body. She really did have a lot of piercings, more than he could count on both hands. She had quite a few tattoos as well.

"What?" She asked laughing. "Don't tell me you're some kind of prude! This is is a one room apartment, so you're literally sitting in my bedroom where it's perfectly OK for me to change!" She said, placing her hands on her hips, not the least bit embarrassed.

L looked at his knees which were drawn up to his chest as usual. She made her way toward him and he shifted on the small couch, refusing to look at her.

"What's the matter? Don't you want to be close to me?" She asked, climbing onto his lap, forcing him to sit normally.

Ignoring her boobs in front of his face, L lifted his eyes to look at her directly.

"What do you want from me?" He asked her very seriously.

"Huh? I...I want to be with you," she said, surprised. "Are you angry that I'm like this?" She asked, covering her chest with her hands.

"No, you can be any way you want for all I care. However, you've had an ulterior agenda ever since we met, which makes me think that you're toying with me and I don't like it. Why are you doing this? You being so adamant about seducing a complete stranger doesn't make any sens-"

He was interrupted by Roxy's lips on his as she kissed him firmly. L was shocked at first. He hadn't kissed anyone since Misa, or even done anything remotely sexual with anyone else in those three years, so having Roxy wriggling on his lap and kissing him was overwhelming. She broke the kiss for an instant, but only so she could lick a trail from the base of his neck up to his ear. L shuddered a little but he allowed it.

She kissed his parted lips again and grabbed his hands, bringing them up to her exposed breasts. She smiled triumphantly as she felt Ryuzaki rub his fingers repeatedly over her pierced nipples. Slowly, his hands began to roam the rest of her body, passing over her most intimate areas. Roxy looked into his lust-filled eyes and rocked her hips slightly, tempting him more with the seductive movement. She didn't know why Ryuzaki was resisting, but she knew for sure that she was winning.

Determined, she went in for the kill with another kiss and this time, Ryuzaki responded. He kissed her back hesitantly and she straddled him while grinding her hips against his, causing him to return the favor with small, shy thrusts of his own. She moaned loudly as he took one of her breasts into his mouth, rolling his tongue over it. Roxy grabbed him by the hair roughly and tugged at his white shirt, which he quickly discarded.

Before long they both tumbled down onto the mattress with Roxy on top, riding him vigorously. She was loud during sex, almost to the point where it was distracting, and she was rough too, biting and digging her long nails into his biceps as he thrust hard into her. Truthfully, L wasn't even sure if he liked this woman. Yes, his body wanted it badly, like an itch that it had been craving to relieve, but inside, his mind was a war zone of conflicting emotions. Even worse, every time he closed his eyes, Roxy's red and black hair got painted yellow, her eyes turned warm like honey, her tattoos and piercings disappeared, leaving behind unmarred, creamy skin, and the rest of her features followed suit until he was picturing Misa on top of him instead of Roxy.

Was it wrong to do that? Perhaps, but he couldn't get himself to care at that point as it drove him closer to the release he'd been secretly yearning for. He kept his eyes closed and his pleasure intensified. The image of Misa was so vivid in his mind, he almost filled with joy, thinking he was with her. She always looked like a goddess whenever she rode him, feminine and feral, and...perfect. He moaned and went faster, harder, and with the wrong name on his lips, he let himself go.

...

L woke up face-down on Roxy's mattress, naked and with a headache. He looked around, temporarily disoriented, noticing that the small, dingy apartment looked even worse during the day than it did at night, when darkness hid some of its decrepitude. He located his boxers and pants and put them on while still searching for his signature white long-sleeved shirt. However, it might as well have sprouted legs and run away because as much as he looked, he could not find it. He crouched on the mattress and frowned.

The bathroom door suddenly swung open and there stood Roxy wearing his shirt.

"Good morning." She greeted, leaning on the door frame. "Looking for something?" She asked, giggling.

"Yes, you're wearing it. I need that back." He said, standing up.

"Sure. But only if you tell me who's Misa."

L's head lifted slightly upon hearing her name. "Misa? Why do you ask about her?"

"Really now, Ryuzaki, I wasn't born yesterday, _obviously._ I'm experienced enough to know when someone is fucking me and thinking about somebody else, and you had your eyes closed the entire time, not to mention that you called her name. You were practically going buck wild for her last night."

'_Well that's unfortunate' _He thought, looking at his feet.

Roxy started laughing. "You're so funny. Don't look so down darling, you can call me whatever you like, I really don't mind." She said. "If you want to call me Misa, go ahead. I'm always down for a little role-playing."

L scratched his head absently and stood up to retrieve his shirt.

"Ah-ah!" She teased crossing her arms protectively over the shirt. "You didn't answer the question so you can't get this. Who's Misa?"

"She's a woman."

"No shit, I could've guessed that one!"

"She was my girlfriend."

"Mmkay, where is she now?"

"I don't know."

"Do you love her?"

"Yes, I think so. It's been a long time since I last saw her and I'd have to see her again to be sure but...regardless, she's important to me."

"Alright, I buy it." Said Roxy. She raised her arms up and allowed L to slip the shirt over her head, his fingers accidentally brushing her skin as he did so. He was not surprised to see that Roxy was naked underneath. '_Of course...' _

She stood there, smiling coyly at him. L tried not to look at her but something on her waist caught his attention; there were small dark circles imprinted on her skin, which in his drunken stupor he mistook for one of her tattoos when in fact, they looked very much like cigarette burns. She noticed him looking at the burn marks. Her smile faltered and she shrunk slightly, looking ashamed for the first time.

"They're burn marks. My bastard ex-boyfriend's doing, but don't get sad or anything, you should see what I did to him. Now _that_ deserves pity." She said. Roxy felt tension as L silently examined the area. "...you don't like them do you..." She murmured, covering her side.

"It's not that," said L, pushing her hands away.

She gave him a small smile and kissed him softly on the lips. L barely made a move and she looked at him with longing.

"Listen, I know you're probably gonna leave and not come back, but for what it's worth, I had a lot of fun last night and I'd love to see you again," she told him, wrapping her arms around his neck. L gave no answer but held her loosely by the hips and returned her embrace, letting himself enjoy the closeness a little longer.

...

Watari sat in his and L's hotel room in London, drinking tea and waiting for his adoptive son to return. He was about to call him again when the door opened and L walked inside, looking the same way he did when Watari last saw him the day before.

"You didn't come home last night." Commented Watari. "Where were you?"

"I was at a bar and then I went to an apartment nearby for the night."

"Hm? By yourself?"

"I went to the bar by myself but I went to the apartment with someone." Said L casually, sifting through the linen closet. Watari frowned.

"And, you're not going to tell me who you were with?"

"I don't understand Wammy, you asked me where I was, not who I was with. I already answered your question." Said L taking out a towel. "I'm going to bathe now, I will see you shortly."

"Alright." Said the old man. He didn't normally question him like this, but the last time L disappeared on him, he'd gone AWOL to kidnap Misa and the baby, and Watari remembered all too well how badly that ended.

Some time later, L emerged from the bathroom with his hair still damp. Watari had set out more tea and a sugar container for L, but the raven-haired man barely touched any of it and instead opened the door, ready to leave.

"Going out again?"

"Yes, oh, and Wammy, please extend the hotel reservation. I'd like for us to remain in London a little longer."

...

He wasn't sure what he was doing there again. L opened the swiveling double doors to the Midnight Blu and walked in to find it looking the same way it did the day before, deserted and tasteless.

'_She mentioned last night that she'd be here...'_ Thought L, scanning the deserted place. He heard bottles clanking and followed the sound until he caught a glimpse of red and black hair under the bar. Roxy looked up and gasped, nearly dropping the wine bottles she'd been holding.

"Ryuzaki!"

"Uh, hi," He said sheepishly, scratching his head. What was he supposed to say now? He'd never really approached a woman this way.

"Hi!"

"So um, are you free later today?" He asked.

Roxy placed her hands on her hips with a big grin on her face. "Why do you ask, huh?"

He gave her a blank stare, wondering if she'd asked him a trick question. He opened his mouth to speak when Roxy came around and kissed him. "You don't have to answer that, I think I already know." She said smiling.

"Sea Bass!" She called behind the bar. "Sea Bass!"

L heard the male bartender's muffled response from the back room. A moment later, 'Sea Bass' poked his head in, asking what she wanted.

"I'm going out," Informed Roxy.

"What? You're leaving me by myself?!"

"Oh my god, there's like no one here Sea Bass, calm the fuck down. I'll be back later...maybe" She said, winking at L.

'Sea Bass' simply rolled his eyes at her and went back to whatever he was doing, mumbling in protest.

"Let's go!" She said taking L by the arm and running out of the bar.

...

Not even 30 minutes had passed before the two ended up in Roxy's disheveled apartment once again. They burst through the lobby doors, making out furiously, touching each other and practically dry humping. They ran up the stairs, Roxy was laughing and teasing him the entire way up. L could barely contain his desire. It was as though Roxy had opened his Pandora's Box of pent-up sexual energy and now there was nothing else for him to do but have his fill, especially when Roxy offered herself so freely.

Roxy fumbled with her keys as she tried to open her door. Impatient, L grabbed her from behind and pressed her into him, massaging her breasts and kissing the side of her neck.

"Ryuzaki...you had me fooled."

"Mm?" He moaned against her neck, running his hands down between her legs.

"I thought you were shy, but...clearly I was wrong..." She moaned, breathy as L slipped his fingers into her panties.

Suddenly, he turned her around and looked her in the eyes. "Roxy...depending on what you want from me, this may or may not be what you want to hear at this particular moment-" He sighed "-Never mind, I'll just get to the point. I can't love you. There is a 95% chance that this relationship between us will be purely physical and short-lived. Now, keeping those premises in mind, it's your choice if you want to continue with this arrangement."

"I get it...you mean you're just using me for sex, right?..." She questioned, frowning.

L nodded.

"Cool. I'm in." She said, grabbing him and kissing him. "I'm all for fucking with no strings attached..."

"Are you sure?" Asked L, caressing her back.

Roxy nodded. "Fuck yes. I also think I can help you...you know, with forgetting about Misa. It'll be fun."

L tensed slightly. Roxy sensed his unease and began stroking him over his jeans, causing him to close his eyes and suckle on her neck.

"Ah-ah...you're going to keep your eyes open this time" She scolded him. L nodded and focused on her.

Pleased, Roxy kissed him and slowly unzipped his pants smirking against L's lips. She slid her hand inside and L's breathing quickened as she took hold of him. "Look at _me_, Ryuzaki. Roxy..." She whispered into his ear. "If you let me, I swear, I will rip her name from your lips and her touch from your skin, and you'll be all mine." She said, licking his ear. Finally, she managed to pop the door open with one hand. Without a moment's hesitation, L lifted her up and around his slender hips as he rushed into the apartment, throwing the door closed behind them.

...-_elsewhere-..._

"_Ring!"_

"_Ring!"_

"_Ri-"_

Misa hung up the desk phone without answering it. Her entire investigation squad looked up at her curiously. She sighed and reached for her cup of coffee, her only source of energy at that point. Gradually, she felt a pounding sensation inside her head, a side-effect of fatigue surely, and stress, so much stress, she could almost pass out from it. It'd been a long time coming but at last, at that moment she snapped and screamed at the top of her lungs.

"I'M DONE! I can't do it anymore, I'm through, finished!" Yelled Misa, throwing a pile of official documents over her head like confetti. The model kicked off her chair as hundreds of papers flew everywhere.

"Uh, are you OK?" Asked Halle, looking up from her computer, alarmed.

The phone rang again. One of the new assistants picked it up.

"No! I'm not OK!" Yelled Misa, pacing back and forth. "I haven't had a break in 46 days. 46 DAYS! Day in and day out, work, work, work, I can't solve this case, these blasted DAs keep jumping down my throat, and my son hates me...I can't take it anymore!" She said flinging her hands up.

"Misa, um...it's the district attorney again. He wants the list of suspects for the Henkel serial murder case." Said the nervous assistant.

Misa stopped mid-tantrum to look at the phone with pure loathing. "I HATE that man." She hissed through gritted teeth.

"O-Okay, but what should I tell him?"

"I don't know! I don't frickin' know who the suspects are because, newsflash, I SUCK AS A DETECTIVE!" She shouted.

"He wants to know when he can have the list though."

"Never!" She shrieked. "Never, because I QUIT!"

Her desk phone rang.

"It's the DA from the Sergei case again Misa-Misa!" Announced a girl sitting at a desk next to Halle.

"DAMMIT!" Screamed Misa, marching up to the phone and slamming it closed several times. "Stop calling! I don't want to talk to you stupid DAs!" She yelled at the phone. All she wanted to do now was run, run away as fast and as far as she could until she no longer knew where she was.

"Misa, calm down!" Said Halle, getting up from her desk. "We can figure this out together just like we did with all the previous cases."

"No! We can't! I'm wrong and everything I do is wrong forever!" Wailed Misa throwing herself on the couch dramatically. Her posse of assistant girls followed her, concerned.

"No Misa-Misa! Don't say that, please!" Said a young woman with blonde pigtails, dressed identical to how Misa used to dress. "You're amazing!"

"Yeah! You're the best!" Proclaimed another Misa look-a-like.

They were her doppelgangers, Clover and Marcia, twin sisters and possibly Misa's greatest fans. They came to know their idol after a mercenary tried to track down the the model one year ago. In an effort to throw off her stalker, Misa and Halle came up with the idea to employ decoy Misa look-alikes throughout the world, creating false Misa sightings, which worked beautifully. As for the girls, they were thrilled to be helping their favorite model.

Misa teared up and knocked her head on the couch. "Who wants to go swimming?!" She asked, all-of-a-sudden.

Her little posse gathered around her, raising their hands.

"I want to go! I love swimming!"

"Me too! I just got a really cute bathing suit!"

Misa sniffled and looked at her doubles. "Good! Because I'm going to cry a river right here!"' Said the starlet, breaking down into a hot, teary-eyed mess.

"Nooo, Misa-Misa! We''ll cry too!" Yelled Marcia and Clover in unison.

While this was happening, Halle looked on helplessly. She'd seen the model blow up plenty of times before, but today was particularly bad.

'_She's taking on too much...she can't handle more of this...'_ She thought. With a determined look, Halle marched over to Misa and picked her up off the couch.

"What are you doing, Halle? Just let me fall! I've failed, I've failed as a woman, I've failed as a mother, I've failed as a detective! All I'm good at is looking pretty!" She cried as Halle dragged her off to the side. Once they had some privacy, the older blonde hugged her, letting her cry into her shoulder for some time.

"Misa, I hate seeing you like this. You can't keep fighting this any longer" said Halle. Misa gave her a look and Halle continued. "You know what I'm talking about... You need him and Mello needs him. It's time to find L."

Misa's crying gradually died down to soft whimpers. She was quiet for some time until finally, she nodded her head.

"OK..." She whispered weakly. "But where should I start? I don't know where he is."

"Hmm, how did you find him before?" Asked Halle.

"I didn't, he found me because I committed a mass murder," replied Misa, half-laughing, half-crying. "Wait-"

"What?" Asked Halle.

"I...I just thought of something," said the younger woman, wiping away her tears. "I'm an idiot!"

Halle rolled her eyes. "Misa, stop beating yourself up already"

"No, it's not that...I think I know how to find L now," She said. "I've always known, actually, I just...was too stupid to notice..."

"Great, how?"

"Through Watari! He told me his real name, it's Wammy. Quillish Wammy. He's a famous inventor or something like that, his name must be somewhere...if we find him, we find L."

"Perfect!" Said Halle going back to the others, leaving Misa to get herself together.

_'We're really going to find L? I'm going to see him again?' _She thought, in wonderment. Surprisingly, after three years, the idea of him coming back into her life thrilled her. Misa dried her eyes, feeling hopeful for the first time in months.

"Alright everyone, pay attention! We are going to help Misa find detective L! Right now this takes priority over the Henkel and Sergei murder cases, so unplug those phone lines and let those DAs do some work on their own for a change!" Ordered Halle. The investigation team did as Halle commanded. Marcia and Clover cheered. _  
_

"Yeah, let's help Misa-Misa, we'll bring this detective L out from wherever he's hiding!" Said one of the twins.

"Yup! Count on us!" Cheered the other twin.

Halle looked at them and smiled. "Good, we're going to need both of you. Now, first things first, we find the inventor Quillish Wammy!"


End file.
